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Yard waste put to good use

Adam Jensen

This summer, Heavenly Mountain Resort will once again incorporate forest material gathered from Nevada residents into its on-mountain erosion control projects.

In its seventh year, “Compost Your Combustibles” encourages community members to bring materials gathered during yard work and defensible space projects to its Boulder Lodge parking lot.

“Heavenly is pleased to continue its participation in ‘Compost Your Combustibles’ together with the Tahoe-Douglas Fire District and South Tahoe Refuse,” said Andrew Strain, Heavenly’s vice president of planning and governmental affairs, in a press statement. “The program helps reduce the potential for wild land fire, reduces the amount of material that otherwise ends up in the landfill, and gives us access to erosion control materials that we use on the mountain each summer.”



After being dropped off in the lot, Tahoe-Douglas Fire District personnel sort the woody debris, pine needles, slash and other landscape wastes.

Large branches are chipped into mulch and wood chips, which are then spread by Heavenly’s trail crews over maintenance roads to minimize erosion.



Pine needles gathered during the process are used as mulch in watershed restoration and re-vegetation projects.

“We turn people’s yard waste into an effective amendment for the soil and to aid infiltration of water directly into the ground,” said Casey Blann, Heavenly’s vice president of mountain operations, in the statement.

Each year, the program diverts over 150 tons of material from the waste cycle and reuses it to help protect watersheds draining into Lake Tahoe, according to the statement.

Compost your combustibles

Heavenly Mountain Resort

When: Daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., until June 24

Where: Boulder Lodge parking lot, 140 South Benjamin Road, Stateline


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