Keep Grass Clippings Out of the Gutters

Grass clippings in the street can have several deleterious side effects for the environment and residents:

 

• Clippings can clump together and create dams in the gutters; this causes potential for stormwater flooding.

• Causes slip and trip hazards for motorcyclists, bikers and runners.

• Can harm water quality when entering the streams and rivers.

 

Once grass clippings are in the environment, they break down and will produce nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. Nitrogen and phosphorus are nutrients that are known to impact water quality and lead to algae blooms which in turn lead to eutrophication of water bodies. Eutrophication occurs when nutrient levels in a water body become so prevalent that only algae can flourish, consuming the oxygen in the water almost entirely, killing off desirable vegetation and animal life. Algae blooms are undesirable and can cause foul odors.

 

The nutrients in grass are bad for the water but good for your lawn, and are often found in fertilizer. By allowing the clippings to decompose in lawns, they break down and introduce the nutrients back into the soil where they can be helpful, as a natural fertilizer. The best practice is rake or blow the clipping off the pavement and spread evenly across the lawn. Times where the clippings become too great, such as after No Mow May, the clippings can be collected and packaged as yard waste.

 

Yard waste disposal for the City of Beloit is defined and regulated by City Ordinance Chapter 17.32 – Collection/Disposal of Yard Waste. The City provides scheduled yard waste collections throughout the year, which can be found at https://beloitsolidwaste.com/yard-waste/. The Solid Waste division will collect yard waste less than four feet long in containers marked with City of Beloit Yard Waste Stickers, which can be purchased from several locations in the City, as identified on the webpage.