Free brush disposal sites available across the Valley

WASILLA — The Alaska Division of Forestry and Matanuska-Susitna Borough are working together to offer free brush and slash disposal sites in an effort to protect homes and reduce human-caused wildfires across the Mat-Su Valley.

The State is providing funding through an existing cooperative agreement with the Borough to ensure residents can drop off spruce-beetle-infested wood and winter wind storm damaged trees at designated sites for free, according to a recent online post from the Division of Forestry. The debris will be safely burned or chipped for future use.

Providing designated drop-off sites will reduce debris burning and the potential for escaped fires, which is the leading cause of wildfires in the Valley, according to Division of Forestry Wildland Fire and Aviation Program Chief Norm McDonald.

“Anything we can do to reduce the number of human-caused fires and assist residents creating defensible space around their home increases public safety and reduces fire suppression costs,” McDonald stated in the post. “Having these disposal sites available saves people time and the risk of an escaped debris burn fire, which traditionally has been our most common wildland fire cause in residential areas.”

According to the post, over 2,100 tons of spruce-beetle-infested brush was collected and disposed of at the designated drop-off sites in 2021 through this program.

The drop-off sites were established in 2019 and they will be available through 2022 thanks to funding assistance from the Division of Forestry and involvement of the Mat-Su Borough Department of Emergency Services and Department of Public Works.

“The Borough appreciates funding assistance from state forestry to help maintain these drop-off sites and reduce the potential for catastrophic wildfires in the Mat-Su Valley,” Mat-Su Borough Emergency Manager Casey Cook stated in the post. “This program has been extremely successful, and this added funding will help homeowners deal with ongoing spruce-beetle and wind-damaged trees which has resulted in dangerous fuel loading.”

Borough staff manage the disposal sites and provide the machinery to safely burn and chip the debris and slash.

Disposal sites can be found at the following areas:

Central Landfill, 1201 N. 49th State St., Palmer. Open 7 days per week, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Accepts brush and trees. Logs must be shorter than 8 feet in length.

Big Lake Transfer Station, 13582 Hollywood Road, Big Lake. Open Friday through Tuesday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Accepts brush and trees. Loads are limited to 5 cubic yards per truck load and must be shorter than 8 feet in length.

Willow Transfer Station, 15469 Willow Transfer Station Road. Open Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 10 am. to 5 p.m. Accepts brush and trees. Loads are limited to 5 cubic yards per truck load and must be shorter than 8 feet in length.

Talkeetna Transfer Station, 25195 S. Talkeetna Spur, Talkeetna. Open Tuesday, Friday, and Saturday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Accepts brush and trees starting on June 1 and continues through September 30. Loads are limited to 5 cubic yards per truck load and must be shorter than 8 feet in length.

For more information, visit akfireinfo.com.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com