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Services - Tree Debris

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1. After a damaging storm, what debris does the City clean-up?

The City is responsible for tree debris that resulted from damage to public trees. Any debris resulting from privately owned trees is the responsibility of the resident. The Park’s Forestry Section is a great resource for questions from residents about how to handle private tree debris clean-up. If you are unsure if tree debris is from public or private trees, please call the Forestry Hotline at (651) 632-5129

2. If a public tree falls in my yard, who is responsible for cleaning it up?

The City will clean-up any debris that is determined to have been from a public tree. The Parks Forestry staff is extensively trained on identifying types and former locations of trees, so if debris is found to have come from a public tree, the City will clean-up the debris regardless of the location.

3. If a tree was damaged and debris is blocking a sidewalk or road what should be done?

If a public passage way is being blocked because of tree damage or debris from a storm, the City will clean it up. Residents can call the Forestry Hotline at (651) 632-5129 and request the debris be removed.

The Parks Forestry staff will review the site and remove any tree damage that is blocking the public passage way. The City is not responsible for removing tree debris beyond the public passage way into privately owned land. The exception to this is when the tree is determined to be a public tree.

4. Why isn’t the debris being picked up?

The devastating damage of the storm that hit on August 11, 2007 had such widespread effects that areas that were hit the hardest were given the opportunity to have the City pick-up tree debris, public or private, provided it was placed on public boulevards. This proclamation was a special case and was only issued because almost 17% of the City’s landmass was affected and over 1000 trees were lost. This removal of debris has now been completed successfully by the Forestry Section.

The City will still remove all public tree debris, but residents now need to remove private tree debris. Residents can call the Forestry Hotline at (651) 632-5129 for questions regarding the removal of the debris, or they can visit the Ramsey County website for information regarding composting sites in Saint Paul accepting brush at no charge.

All Residents are asked to clean-up private tree debris as soon as possible after a storm, as lingering debris can pose a safety concern. Ramsey County offers composting sites where residents can bring brush and debris at no charge. Ramsey County