Do you live in the foothills of Boulder County and hope to do more defensible space clearing on your property? As you begin that work, remember that you can drop off your logs, slash, and timber at a Community Forestry Sort Yard for free. There, all that biomass will be mulched and sent to several compost facilities. Logs will be ground and used for biomass fuel in one the two biomass facilities in the county.
Besides woody materials, we accept pine needles and noxious weeds. Removing pine needles and cones from around your home is an important part of maintaining defensible space. And, removing some of your noxious weeds every season helps keep weeds in check on your land.
All new Sort Yard users will need to complete a short registration form before unloading, and contractors must provide client’s name and physical address where biomass came from.
This is the 14th season that the Sort Yards have accepted Boulder County woody biomass. Last year, you and your neighbors dropped off approximately 1,612 tons. That’s a lot of biomass!
Sort Yards Are Education Hubs
Besides a place for foothills residents to bring their woody biomass, this county program provides information about forest health, defensible space, and other forestry management practices in an online monthly newsletter. Some say that’s the best service of the Community Forest Sort Yards.
Sort Yard Hours of Operation & Locations
Nederland Sort Yard – 291 Ridge Road, Nederland 80466
- Open April 28 – Oct. 23
- Wednesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Meeker Park Sort Yard – 8200 Hwy 7, Allenspark 80510
- Open May 12 – Oct. 16
- Wednesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Website: boco.org/sortyard
What You Can Drop Off
Logs
- All species are accepted
- Trim the branches, flush to the trunk
- Ends of logs must be cut square
- Burned logs are accepted
“We have been coming to the sort yard regularly for the past 5 years. Without this facility, we would have never been able to make this kind of progress clearing our property and mitigating against fire.”
-Mark & Yvonne
Slash & Branches
- Separate conifers and broad leaf trees (aspen trees go in the broad leaf pile)
- Chunk and decayed wood
- All wood must be free of nails, wire, and metal
- Remove root ball
Noxious Weeds
- Must be in a paper yard bag (rolled shut; please don’t use tape or staples)
Pinecones, Needles, & Leaves
- Consider storing pinecones and needles in a reusable container since you can take it back to collect more at your property
- If grass is mixed with your pinecones and needles, everything must be stored in a brown paper bag because of concerns about cheatgrass
- All grasses must be stored in a paper bag
A Few Tips
Keep in mind, this facility is a “sort” yard, and you will need to unload your biomass into the correct areas. Before you begin loading materials into your vehicle, clean out the pick-up bed or trailer so trash and debris don’t mix with biomass you’ll be dropping off.
Also, it’s best to keep different types of materials separate from each other since there are different locations within the Sort Yard to unload different materials. You’ll get in and out faster if you do!