Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/689373
JUNE 8-14, 2016 UCW 11 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM Some municipalities provide seasonal curbside loose-leaf collection. Fayetteville does. Leaves not only pose a problem for the storm drainage system. They also harm the water quality of local rivers and streams. Decomposing leaves release nutrients that can cause harmful algae to grow and bloom, which lead to fish kills by robbing the water of oxygen. Fayetteville is among the communities in North Carolina recognized as 'tree cities' by the National Arbor Day Foundation. The trees produce a lot of leaves and pine needles. Managing falling leaves is a year-round effort for the City of Fayetteville. "Most people bag or containerize their leaves, but during leaf season we expand our routes from 10 to 12," said Environmental Services Director Jerry Dietzen. His agency picks up bagged leaves. Recre- ation and Parks, on the other hand, is responsible for loose-leaf collection in the fall and winter. The actual leaf season depends on the weather and climate based on when the leaves fall, but typically it runs from late October through mid-February. The Parks Department operates five one-man vacuum trucks and assigns them to the 148-square mile city according to postal zip codes. Budget cuts have re- duced the city's ability to vacuum the leaves to only once during the season and that's the way it's going to remain. City Council has decided to add two more vacuum trucks and crews this year. The loose leaf collection season will likely be shorted by a few weeks, and apparently won't begin until early December, ending in mid-February. Residents are asked to place leaves and pine straw on or behind the curb away from storm drains and out of the road. Leaves left in the street can cause storm water pollution and may obstruct the storm drainage system, resulting in flooding. Understanding the rules is more chal- lenging for local residents than in some cities because Fayetteville is a transient community. Half the homes are rentals, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, and tenants don't always know the proper way to dispose of yard debris. "The transient turnover is always a problem," said Dietzen. Except during leaf collection season, leaves and pine straw must be bagged or containerized for pickup. They're picked up weekly. If loose leaves are left at the street out of season, offending residents will be notified and given 10 days to bag them. Then, they'll be charged $75, and the city will gather up the leaves. "Free trash bags are made available year round at city fire stations and recreation centers" according to Recreations and Parks Director Michael Gibson. Brown roll-out carts designed for yard trash can be purchased from the city for $53. The carts become the property of the residents and have a 10-year warranty. In Fayetteville, it's illegal to rake or blow leaves into the street. NEWS Loose-Leaf Collection by JEFF THOMPSON Three summers ago in Fayetteville, the Special Operations Forces (SOF) K-9 Memorial Foundation unveiled a bronze life-sized likeness of a Belgian Malinois, dressed in full combat gear. The memorial is believed to be the only one of its kind dedicated to special operations K-9s in the world. It's on the parade field of the Airborne and Special Operations Museum. Fifty-eight stone pavers created from North Carolina granite bear the names, countries of origin and years the dogs died. The Bel- gian Malinois, like the German shepherd, is a popular working dog in military and police service. It's a bit smaller, has shorter hair and has greater endurance than shepherds. The Belgian Malinois exhibits energy levels that are among the highest of all dog breeds. "Like their human counter- parts, special operations multi-purpose canines are specially selected, trained and equipped to serve in roles not expected of the traditional military working dog," said Chuck Yerry, President of the SOF K-9 Me- morial Foundation. The Foundation honors the canines each year on Memorial Day. They share the same risks as the troops, suffering injuries and sometimes death on the battlefields. "They've given their lives for their country and we are grateful to be able to honor them," said Paul Gal- loway, the Airborne and Special Operations Museum Foundation's executive director. Crystal Blasjo and her son, Talon, attended this year's Memorial Day ceremony. Blasjo's husband, Aaron, and his dog, Hunter, were killed in action on May 29, 2011. She and her son placed flags for Aaron and Hunter. Throughout the course of the long wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, coalition troops relied on military working dogs to help keep them safe. The dogs are trained to detect explosives, to find illegal drugs, to search for missing comrades or target enemy combat- ants. Not only are they active on the front lines, but they also serve as therapy dogs and service dogs. Not much is known about the Navy SEALs who stormed Osama bin Laden's compound in Abbottabad, Paki- stan, but a few details are coming out about one of them. He has four legs and a highly trained nose. According to The New York Times, one member of the commando team that killed bin Laden was "what may be the nation's most courageous dog." Almost nothing is known about the animal, and even military sources weren't clear about its breed, telling the Times it was probably either a German Shepherd or a Belgian Malinois. The Guardian reports that "the unidentified canine was lowered into the compound from a helicopter while strapped to a human member of the team." A dog would have been essential in the raid to pro- tect soldiers from explosive devices. Accord- ing to the Times, dogs "have proved far better than people or machines at quickly finding bombs," including improvised explosive devices, which were responsible for two-thirds of all casualties in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. A Memorial to Canine Warriors by JEFF THOMPSON The Belgian Malinois, like the German shepherd, is a popular working dog in military and police service. Fayetteville is among the communities in North Carolina recognized as 'tree cities' by the National Arbor Day Foundation. JEFF THOMPSON, Senior News Reporter. COMMENTS? news@upandcomingweekly. com. 910.484.6200.