With the beginning of February comes the start of Brush Collection season for Knoxville residents - just in time to prepare yards for the spring.

The Public Service Department announced that City crews will begin collecting brush and other household yard waste from Feb. 1st until Oct. 31st.

Last year, the department had plenty of work to do. More than 5,500 tons of brush were picked up from Knoxville streets in the aftermath of violent June storms alone; and in 2011 the City collected more than 33,000 tons of yard waste. Those storms knocked down hundreds of trees across the city.

"Our crews worked overtime to remove all of that debris," said David Brace, Director for the Public Service Department. "This year, we are hoping for a more normal brush collection, but we will be prepared for whatever comes our way."

The City picks up household brush in neighborhoods every two weeks; it then collects leaves three to four times from each home from Nov. 1st until the end of January - during annual leaf season. During brush collections, yard waste should be placed next to the street in an unobstructed area and kept separate from other trash or debris.

On each two-week cycle, an approximately 6' x 6' x 6' pile of brush can be collected. The City asks that to prevent traffic obstructions, residents not place brush piles in streets. Brush should also not be placed in ditches due to stormwater obstruction.

Schedules are subject to change based on weather conditions and other uncontrollable events, so users should periodically check the City's website. Further information is also available by calling 311, which is your direct line to the City of Knoxville and its services.

Due to the volume of storm debris, the City of Knoxville's Public Service Department is suspending its normal two-week brush collection schedules and will focus solely on clean-up and removal of trees, limbs and other debris.

Crews will be working overtime Thursday evening, Friday evening and all day Saturday (April 28-30) in an effort to remove as much damaged tree material as possible.

Residents should stack/place organic debris at the edge of their property for collection. Please try to keep debris out of the street and off of sidewalks. Large trees and limbs should be cut into manageable sections if at all possible.

Extremely large tree sections MAY require the use of different collection equipment and may not be collected immediately. The standard collection limits will be suspended at this time.

Public Service will reassess conditions on the ground Monday May 2, to determine a course of action for the next several weeks.

David Brace, deputy director of the city's Public Service Department, said Thursday that he anticipates suspending schedules for at least the next two weeks in order to completely clean up from this week's inclement weather.

A final decision, however, will not be made until after Monday's assessment.

The department's overtime plan for this week and weekend are an attempt to get the worst damage debris removed. Residents should not feel obligated to get all debris to the street by Saturday since crews will be continuing to clean neighborhoods throughout the coming weeks.