Leave it to the leaf sweeping teams in Exeter this Autumn

Published: 12 November 2019

Leaf sweeping teams in Exeter are set to collect around 250 tonnes of leaves from the roads and pavements this autumn and that’s the weight of a blue whale!

A single leaf falling to ground from a tree weighs very little, but multiplied by the number of leaves on a tree and the number of trees in Exeter…and that’s a lot of leaves.

As well as the 381km of public highway, the Public and Green Space teams from the City Council also collect from the parks and open spaces across Exeter, keeping paths both slip free and leaf free over autumn.

The Council run five mechanical sweepers and three leaf teams solely to deal with leaves at this time of year. The teams operate leaf blowers and the equivalent of a leaf vacuum cleaner to suck up the leaves. After it’s all collected, non-contaminated leaves go off to be turned into valuable compost.

Residents who want to report a large build-up of leaves in their street can report it to the Council on 01392 265409. Any businesses that require leaf clearance can also contact the council on the same number.