The Green Register Talks Christmas Trees!

The Green Register is that outstanding online magazine that we’ve been speaking so much about the last few months.  The comments have been absolutely outstanding when it comes to the wealth of answers, information, articles, and products that allow you and your family – as well as businesses – to learn how to live a “greener” life.  And seeing as that we are all embarking on the ‘greenest’ time of the year, The Green Register wishes to give you information on Christmas tree recycling that will offer a sense of pride and happiness to all families who enjoy the beauty of the mighty tree, and then can help the planet when the season comes to an end.

 

Treecycling is a truly major step in making your holiday green!  There is actually a company called Earth911.com that offers thousands of treecycling events and information to get all families and businesses on track to celebrate the holidays and cut back on the ‘carbon footprint’ that is being left behind.  Remember, it is up to all of us to save our planet and keep nature thriving!

 

The holidays come up so fast.  Between buying presents to wrapping them all, mailing them out, baking those cookies, consuming that champagne, and – most of all – spending time with our family and friends, the holiday season feels as if it’s flying by faster than the historic Concord.

 

After the holiday comes the monumental task of clean-up, which includes taking down the Christmas tree and recycling it. What most people don’t know is that real Christmas trees are a huge renewable resource and can be recycled in a number of ways.  Everything from chipping the trees to use as mulch in community areas, or as erosion protection in fragile areas like river deltas, to helping underwater beings thrive are things that can come from treecycling.

 

This year, the expert team at Earth911 has collected treecycling information for more than eighty-five percent of the U.S. population.  What does this mean to you?  This research means that all the information you need in order to do the right thing with your tree is available all in one place – including drop-off locations that everyone from apartment owners to businesses can utilize.  This is a huge extensive outreach program and is supported by the dedicated growers who participated this season to support the communication of treecycling events around the country.

 

Yes, this is a very important subject, especially when you learn that the Environmental Protection Agency estimates that twenty percent of the U.S. municipal solid waste is already organic, so it’s worth the time to properly dispose of your tree.  There are so many ways to make sure that your tree doesn’t simply end up in a landfill somewhere, so here are some key points in making sure that you definitely treecycle!

 

You should know that just because someone picks up your tree doesn’t mean it will be recycled or composted; it could end up in a landfill where it will take serious time to biodegrade.  And, by the way, this is not only something that happens in small rural communities. For example, there are many towns with populations of more than 200,000 that will tell you that Christmas trees are collected and not recycled, but you CAN bring your trees to a yard waste facility for recycling.  And there are many big cities that offer incentives to their residents, like New York and Denver. Here, Christmas trees are mulched, and the remaining material is made available to the public free of charge. Just think how much you will save on garden supplies in the spring!

 

Also, be timely with your treecycling.  This writer has had neighbors in the past who still have trees on their porches and Christmas lights hung on the outside of their homes in April.  But with Christmas trees, timing is really important because most recycling programs only last a few weeks in January.  In addition, many waste facilities only operate under special hours in January, so if you’re late with recycling your tree, your curbside program may consider your tree to be “bulky waste,” and  require an extra fee to haul it away.

 

The value of recycling Christmas trees is that they can be composted, mulched, or even converted into fuel.  But everyone must know ahead of time that the tree only falls under the category of organic once the lights, tinsel, and everything else is removed from its branches.  Also, one of the most difficult things to allow a Christmas tree to be recycled is when the tree has been spray painted white. This guarantees that the tree will head to the landfill, so it’s always best to keep your Christmas decorations as simple as possible in order to get the treecycling perfect!

 

There are so many out there who want to make sure that they are doing the best they can for their environment – especially when the next generation is in desperate need of a happy, healthy planet.  Of course, there are also many who simply don’t understand why, if they’re doing something good for the environment, why should they have to pay for it?  Yes, you are doing a spectacularly good thing for a  very good cause but, as always, it takes money to do that good thing.  It takes money to turn a Christmas tree into something usable, whether it’s mulch or even landfill cover.  BUT there are programs that you can use where the money actually will go to a wonderful cause, like a raising funds for the Girl or Boy Scouts of America.  So actually, you can take pride in the fact that you not only did a great thing for the environment, but you also lent your support to an extremely worthy cause!

 

Yes.  Before asking, there is definitely a way where you can avoid all costs and recycle your Christmas tree yourself!  If you’re worried about getting your tree to the curb on time, there are plenty of ways to take care of the tree without using any sort of recycling program:

 

Always remember that a fir tree can be turned into almost fifteen pounds of firewood that will keep you warm all winter long.  The needles have also been used for mulch, as well as art projects that you can do with your children.

 

Believe it or not, if you have a pond in the backyard, tossing your Christmas tree in actually helps the fish.  With your ‘deposit,’ the fish receive shelter as well as much-needed nutrients that keep the water-quality clean.  There are many communities that have drop-off locations for just this purpose!

 

In the end – whether Christmas, or not – you should always remember that this is the world you live in; and The Green Register makes sure on a daily basis that you are provided with all the data you need in order to change your life and ‘go green!’

 

Happy Holidays!

 

Until Next Time, Everybody!

 

For more information, go NOW to:

www.thegreenregister.com