• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • HOME
  • NEWS+OPINIONS
    • NEWS TO US
    • COLUMNS
      • APPARENT HORIZON
      • DEAR READER
      • Close
    • LONGFORM FEATURES
    • OPINIONS
    • EDITORIAL
    • Close
  • ARTS+ENTERTAINMENT
    • FILM
    • MUSIC
    • COMEDY
    • PERFORMING ARTS
    • VISUAL ARTS
    • Close
  • DINING+DRINKING
    • EATS
    • SIPS
    • BOSTON BETTER BEER BUREAU
    • Close
  • LIFESTYLE
    • CANNABIS
      • TALKING JOINTS MEMO
      • Close
    • WELLNESS
    • GTFO
    • Close
  • STUFF TO DO
  • TICKETS
  • ABOUT US
    • ABOUT
    • MASTHEAD
    • ADVERTISE
    • PRIVACY POLICY
    • Close
  • BECOME A MEMBER

Dig Bos

The Dig - Boston's Only Newspaper

STATE WIRE: ENVIRONMENTAL EXPERTS SAY, ‘PUT THE RAKES AWAY’

Written by LAURA ROSBROW-TELEM Posted October 6, 2020 Filed Under: News, News to Us, NEWS+OPINIONS

We could be living alongside box turtles and salamanders


BOSTON—If you’re feeling lazy about leaves piling up on your property, experts say you shouldn’t. Leaving those leaves can help the environment as well as wildlife, according to conservation groups.

David Mizejewski is a naturalist with the National Wildlife Federation. He said letting some leaves stay on the ground is cost effective, since they become a natural fertilizer. But also, leaves in the trash are a big problem.

“Leaves, according to the EPA, make up about 13% of the solid waste that ends up in our landfills,” Mizejewski said. “That’s organic waste, which is what leaves are, it’s organic material. As that breaks inside the landfill, it actually releases methane.”

Mizejewski added methane is a particularly potent greenhouse gas contributing to climate change. He thinks the American habit of raking and leaf blowing is tied to the start of suburbia and lawns. Instead, Mizejewski recommends cultivating gardens with more natural plants and leaf litter, and less lawn space, which also helps wildlife.

Mizejewski noted most lawns act as dead space, and aren’t great for wildlife. This is part of why certain butterfly and songbird populations are facing steep decline. But leaving more leaves on the ground provides food and shelter for birds, butterflies and other species.

“Lots of animals actually live in the leaf litter year round,” he said. “Things like toads or box turtles or salamanders – really, really cool animals can happily coexist with us right in our own yards and gardens if we just give them a little bit of space.”

Some gardeners caution while leaving some leaves on the ground is beneficial, it may be worthwhile to shred certain leaves that would otherwise take a long time to decompose. 

For more information, visit nwf.org.

LAURA ROSBROW-TELEM

Laura is a national producer for Public News Service. Before that, she was the news director at WRFI in Ithaca, NY, and prior to that worked as a print journalist in Israel. She has covered basically everything: technology, local government, health, social issues, peace and justice, cultural topics, etc. Her pieces have been published in the Atlantic, Business Insider, NPR News, NPR member station WSKG, the San Francisco Chronicle, the Next Web, the Jerusalem Post, Mic (formerly known as PolicyMic), the Times of Israel, Geektime, AlterNet, the Oakland Tribune, Walla! News, and the Jewish Exponent.

Related posts
  • LAURA ROSBROW-TELEM
    https://digboston.com/author/laura-rosbrow-telem/
    October 30, 2020
    STATE WIRE: MASS COMPANY ANALYZES WASTEWATER FOR EARLY COVID DETECTION
  • LAURA ROSBROW-TELEM
    https://digboston.com/author/laura-rosbrow-telem/
    Election Night results Massachusetts
    October 15, 2020
    STATE WIRE: HERE’S WHAT EXPERTS SAY WE CAN EXPECT AFTER ELECTION DAY
  • LAURA ROSBROW-TELEM
    https://digboston.com/author/laura-rosbrow-telem/
    mail in ballot Massachusetts
    September 23, 2020
    STATE WIRE: MASS VOTERS CAN REQUEST MAIL-IN BALLOTS ONLINE
  • LAURA ROSBROW-TELEM
    https://digboston.com/author/laura-rosbrow-telem/
    September 6, 2020
    STATE WIRE: COALITION TO SAFELY REOPEN MA SCHOOLS VOICES VENTILATION CONCERNS

Filed Under: News, News to Us, NEWS+OPINIONS Tagged With: Environment, fall news, news, news to us

WHAT’S NEW

Abortion rights protestors in Copley Square, Boston, the evening of the SCOTUS decision to strike down Roe v. Wade. Photo by Charlotte Howard. Photo by Charlotte Howard

Protestors Gather in Copley Square to Fight for Abortion Rights

A View of the Harvard Square Pit in June 2022. Photo by Jason Pramas. Copyright 2022 Jason Pramas

Why This Pit Kid Is Not Going to ‘Pit-A-Palooza’

Reader Responses: "Unruly, Argumentative Governor's Council ..."

Reader Responses: “Unruly, Argumentative Governor’s Council …”

Inbox: Legislation To Protect Vote for Eligible Incarcerated Voters on Baker’s Desk

Inbox: Legislation To Protect Vote for Eligible Incarcerated Voters on Baker’s Desk

Mental-Health Program Provides Alternative to Emergency-Room Boarding

Mental-Health Program Provides Alternative to Emergency-Room Boarding

Unruly, Argumentative Governor’s Council Inflames Parole Board Hearings

Unruly, Argumentative Governor’s Council Inflames Parole Board Hearings

Primary Sidebar

Advertisement

FEATURED EVENT

Advertisement

Most Popular

  • Dig This: The Return Of the Boston Seafood Festival
  • No Smoking, No Thank You. Advocates Decry Cannabis Social Consumption Rules in Mass
  • Meet the Phantom Behind Greater Boston’s Awesome Food Feed Everybody Gotta Eat
  • Dig This: The Hot Dog Safari Food Truck & Craft Beer Festival
  • Why This Pit Kid Is Not Going to ‘Pit-A-Palooza’

Footer

Social Buttons

DigBoston facebook DigBoston Twitter DigBoston Instagram

Masthead

About

Advertise

Privacy Policy

Customer Service

Distribution

About Us

DigBoston is a one-stop nexus for everything worth doing or knowing in the Boston area. It's an alt-weekly, it's a website, it's an e-mail blast, it's a twitter account, it's that cool party that you were at last night ... hey, you're reading it, so it's gotta be good. For advertising inquiries: [email protected] To reach Editorial: [email protected] For internship opportunities: [email protected]