Can I Collect Wood From The Side of The Road?

We’ve all seen people loading up their trucks, trailers with all sorts of wood that is laying just right by the road.

It could be tempting to pass up on such a deal if you’re on the scrounge yourself, but is it legal?

Ask first

The wood that’s left cut on the roadside is owned by somebody, period. You cannot take any of it before making sure it is actually legal to do so.

Who should you ask? Well, it depends on who owns that particular stretch of land.

I would begin by contacting the local authorities. Oftentimes, wood that is piled by the edge of a road is left by utility companies that were servicing that area.

If it’s public land, they might be more than willing for you to take all of it; after all, they’d need to invest time and effort to dispose it themselves otherwise. But they could also reject your request as well.

The wood could also be in a private property; in that case, the county might direct you to the landowner.

The landowner could also be more than happy for you to take advantage of the situation. However, he may also state that it is not up for grabs at all; maybe he’s going to use it to heat his own house, etc.

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The picture i’m trying to paint here is that you have to ask first. You can’t assume that logs, even if they’re piled nice and neat, looking like it’s just made for somebody to pull up and load, are indeed up for the taking.