Leaves by the bale as autumn challenges Waipā workers

Leaves being gathered by the bale by Waipa District Council contractors. Photo / Supplied

If you thought there were more than usual heaps of fallen leaves around this autumn you would be right - sort of.

There has not really been many more leaves, it is just that a lot more have been dropping off a lot earlier this year, which is posing a challenge for some of the people responsible for clearing up the leaf litter in the streets.

Waipā District Council says bad weather and heavier-than-usual leaf fall have made a difficult start to the annual leaf collection service.

The service operates for 11 weeks from approximately May to July, and collects leaves from designated streets in Cambridge, Te Awamutu and Kihikihi that have fallen from council-owned street trees and protected trees into the adjacent properties.

Council operations team leader Jennifer Braithwaite said contractors were facing much higher volumes this year.

"Usually, trees lose their leaves simultaneously over a period of 10 to 12 weeks. This year however, the majority of trees have lost their leaves in a period of just three to four weeks which has resulted in a much larger collection loads."

Braithwaite said with the recent improvement in weather, contractors had been able to make some headway in the collection.

"A build-up of leaves can block drains, cause slip hazards and make a mess of our roads. With the excess leaf fall this year, our contractors are visiting more than 60 streets each week and working hard to keep on top of collection."

Residents on collection streets, who have leaves from the street trees in their front yard, should put the leaves for collection in a pile on the berm, not in the kerb and channel as this can create blockages. Garden waste and sticks will not be collected. Residents on non-collection streets need to dispose of their leaves by other means.

Leaves are collected weekly in Cambridge and Te Awamutu and fortnightly in Kihikihi. Collection maps are available online here.