Double-layered paper leaf collection bags will be available at Kaiserslautern recycling centers starting Sept. 30, 2024. The city is offering these reusable bags to help residents safely manage fallen leaves, which can create hazardous conditions on streets and sidewalks when wet. (Kaiserslautern City Maintenance )

With autumn leaves beginning to fall and creating potential safety hazards, Kaiserslautern’s City Maintenance Department will help residents to take action by offering special leaf collection bags starting Sept. 30.

The department will ramp up efforts to clear streets and sidewalks, officials said in a statement Wednesday. But property owners are required to manage leaves on their own premises to prevent accidents.

“We remove leaves wherever we clean year-round,” said Andrea Buchloh-Adler, head of the City Maintenance Department. “If property owners are responsible for street cleaning, they must also remove fallen leaves.”

The leaf collection bags will be available at city recycling centers on Daennerstrasse, Pfaffstrasse, and Siegelbacher Strasse. These double-layered paper sacks can be reused and emptied at the recycling centers’ containers. Additionally, from Oct. 5, green waste containers will be stationed throughout the city for residents’ convenience.

Residents are encouraged to let leaves remain in their gardens under trees and shrubs, where they can decompose and serve as natural mulch, supporting small soil-dwelling creatures and enriching the ground.