{"id":495614,"date":"2026-10-14T08:18:30","date_gmt":"2026-10-14T08:18:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/495614\/"},"modified":"2026-10-14T08:18:30","modified_gmt":"2026-10-14T08:18:30","slug":"sacramento-prepares-for-super-el-nino-and-leaf-season","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/495614\/","title":{"rendered":"Sacramento prepares for Super El Ni\u00f1o and leaf season"},"content":{"rendered":"

Each fall city crews prepare the months-long grind of collecting thousands of tons of wet leaves, broken limbs and fallen trees to keep Sacramento\u2019s streets safe. This year city officials are confident in their ability to manage the effects of the predicted Super El Ni\u00f1o,<\/a> but are asking that residents do their part to prevent flooding.<\/p>\n

Sacramento\u2019s tree canopy is one of the most iconic features of the city, but the lush greenery that provides relief from summer heat has drawbacks in the winter, particularly during harsh, stormy weather.<\/p>\n

\u201cSacramento is synonymous with the Claw and our trees,\u201d Mayor Kevin McCarty said. \u201cWe want to make sure we have plentiful urban forest in Sacramento. But with that comes lots of leaves, and with big storms or atmospheric rivers, potential for massive havoc in the neighborhood.\u201d<\/p>\n

During an atmospheric river in the first few weeks of 2023, more than 1,500 trees toppled<\/a> throughout the city \u2014 smashing homes, splitting cars and killing two people living on the street<\/a>. Cleanup took months.<\/p>\n

\"Extensively Extensively damaged homes stand on the 2600 block of Capitol Avenue in Sacramento on Jan. 10, 2023, after a powerful storm. XAVIER MASCARE\u00d1AS Sacramento Bee file \"A A visitor to William Land Golf Course walks past downed trees near the fourth hole on Jan. 12, 2023. HECTOR AMEZCUA Sacramento Bee file <\/p>\n

Fallen leaves from Sacramento\u2019s one million trees also pose an issue. Wet piles of leaves in public right of ways reduce traction, posing a slippery risk to drivers, cyclists and pedestrians alike. Leaf piles blocking storm drains can lead to flooding, and can also negatively affect water quality when washed off into drains or rivers.<\/p>\n

Normally Sacramento receives around 10 inches of rainfall between December and February, but this year\u2019s El Ni\u00f1o season is predicted to bring 17, a 150% increase. In addition to potential flooding, El Ni\u00f1o also increases the risk of atmospheric rivers and windstorms which often result in a higher number of falling trees.<\/p>\n

\"Sacramento Sacramento Mayor Kevin McCarty clears leaves from a drain during a winter weather preparation event in Land Park on Monday. HECTOR AMEZCUA hamezcua@sacbee.com How to manage leaf season in Sacramento<\/p>\n

McCarty said that despite a tough budget year, core city services were not cut and the departments responsible for winter weather services are well-staffed and ready to go. Department of Utilities spokesperson Carlos Eliason said his team isn\u2019t nervous for the upcoming season but is instead focused on preparedness.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe biggest thing is that the crews are ready and alert,\u201d he said. \u201cWe have a mindset of readiness.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sacramento\u2019s 10 front-loading tractors will take to the streets beginning Nov. 1 to collect leaf piles across the city. The Claw is a symbol of autumnal joy for many, inspiring celebrity sighting-style social media posts featuring the John Deere tractor collecting its first pile<\/a> of the season or \u201ctaking a coffee break\u201d<\/a> outside a Starbucks.<\/p>\n

\"Sacramento Sacramento Mayor Kevin McCarty sits in the Claw as he attends a winter weather preparation event in Land Park on Monday. HECTOR AMEZCUA hamezcua@sacbee.com <\/p>\n

To help the Claw, city officials are encouraging people to manage their leaf piles. The best practice is to fill your household\u2019s organic waste bin compactly before gathering leaves into piles.<\/p>\n

The city advises residents to place piles away from storm drains and parked cars. And the city\u2019s residential service guide says that pet feces and plastic bags should never be placed in leaf piles or organic waste bins.<\/p>\n

Keeping trash from leaf piles and storm drains can also help reduce the effect on water quality, Eliason said.<\/p>\n

Depending on the weather, leaf pile pick-up times can slow as the season goes on, warned Jesa David with the Recycling and Solid Waste division, but organic waste bins are collected weekly.<\/p>\n

During the Claw\u2019s three-month period of operation, it\u2019s expected to make seven pick-ups per household, while the organic waste bins will be collected 13 times over the same period.<\/p>\n


\n \"Profile
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

Jennah Pendleton<\/a><\/p>\n

The Sacramento Bee<\/p>\n

Jennah Pendleton covers the city of Sacramento for The Sacramento Bee. She previously reported on local schools. Before joining The Bee, she wrote about education and culture in the San Francisco Bay Area. She grew up in Orange County and is a graduate of the University of Oregon.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Each fall city crews prepare the months-long grind of collecting thousands of tons of wet leaves, broken limbs…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":495615,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[121,123,122],"class_list":["post-495614","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sacramento","tag-sacramento","tag-sacramento-headlines","tag-sacramento-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/495614","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=495614"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/495614\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/495615"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=495614"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=495614"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=495614"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}