Fallen leaves can be a sign that autumn is here, and the responsibility of clearing them off roadways and sidewalks is now in full swing.

The university and borough perform leaf collection separately, but most collected leaves will succumb to the same fate -- composting.

The compost is sold by the borough or used by the university for landscaping features on campus.

"Leaves are composted because it recycles them and helps the environment," said Mark Whitfield, director of public works for the State College borough. "It is the right thing to do."

Whitfield said the peak of the borough's leaf collection comes during the last week of October through the first week of November. Collection starts at the end of September and continues until mid-December.

He also said the majority of leaves are not collected downtown, but rather from residential areas and the fraternity district.

"Once leaves are collected, they are mixed with grass and sold in 40-pound bags for compost in the summer months," Whitfield said. "Leaves from the downtown area are not used for compost, though, because they are mixed with trash and oils."

Whitfield added that the sale of compost does not offset the cost of collection.

A 12-person crew collects leaves three times a week and staggers where they work, using Atherton Street as a dividing line.

"East of Atherton [Street] is done one week, and west of Atherton [Street] is done on the others, Whitfield said.

He added that leaf collection costs about $68,000 annually. It is charged to taxpayers on their refuse bill.

Paul Ruskin, Office of Physical Plant (OPP) spokesman, said leaves collected on-campus are also used for compost for the university.

"We mix the leaves with other organic leftovers from dining halls and create compost," Ruskin said. "We use this compost for the university flower garden and trees around campus."

He said there are more trees on campus now than there were 20 years ago because of the tree-replanting program. In 1993 there were 11,147 trees on campus, compared to 12,433 in 2003.

"More trees means more leaves," Ruskin said. "The more compost we can get, the better."

Leaves on campus are collected by the OPP landscape crew.

Bill Elmendorf, assistant professor of community forestry, said that because there is a large diversity of trees in State College, it is hard to pinpoint an exact time that trees begin to lose their leaves.

Elmendorf said certain trees, such as walnut trees, lose their foliage early. Others, like red oaks, are still heavily covered in leaves.

He added that wind is a major factor in determining the time it takes for trees to shed their foliage, and because trees have absorbed a lot of water, they have produced a lot of growth in general.

"It has been pretty windy so far this season," Elmendorf said.

He said young trees usually hold their leaves better than older trees, but the mix of tree types usually keeps everything balanced.