As spring cleanup gets underway, a free weekend event is giving people a chance to clear out yard debris while taking a step toward wildfire safety.
Truckee Meadows Fire & Rescue is holding its Spring Green Waste Collection Days for one weekend only, Saturday, May 2, and Sunday, May 3.
The event offers free green waste disposal as a way to help people create defensible space around their homes and reduce the risk of property damage, injury, and loss of life during wildfire season. It allows people to get rid of dry and dead vegetation, shrubs, tree branches, and other wildland fuels.
Collection is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., weather permitting. Officials advise checking the agency website before heading out to confirm the event is not canceled due to weather conditions or a Red Flag Warning.
Two locations are set for the weekend:
On Saturday, May 2, collection will take place at Silver Lake Station, 11525 Red Rock Road in Reno.
On Sunday, May 3, collection will be held at the Nevada Division of Forestry Fire Station, 885 Eastlake Blvd in Washoe Valley.
The event is free for all Washoe County residents and is sponsored by the Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District, with support from the Nevada Division of Forestry, Waste Management, Nevada Recycling and Salvage, and Reno Rock.
Fire personnel will be on-site to help. Accepted items include junipers, pines, rabbitbrush, sagebrush, and other woody vegetation.
Only natural vegetation will be accepted. Items not allowed include household garbage and trash, lumber, hazardous materials, grass clippings, dirt and gravel, and stumps with root balls. Tree stumps larger than 8 inches in diameter will not be accepted.
Items cannot be dropped off in bags. Bags must be emptied on-site and taken away.
Officials also remind people not to leave waste outside of operating hours, as that will be considered illegal dumping.
