New Options for O’ Tannenbaum : Recycling: Wondering what to do with that aging ex-Christmas tree? To be environmentally responsible and socially correct, have it ground into mulch.
Don’t trash that Christmas tree just yet.
Today, its boughs may be drooping, its needles shedding and its presents unwrapped, but the tree’s post-Christmas role is just starting to take on luster.
As the first Christmas celebration of the ‘90s--the “green decade”--fades away, trashing the tree is becoming passe faster than you can say “recycle,” the new option for the 35 million pines, firs and spruces that have just finished playing their starring role in American homes.
Instead of going to the landfill and taking up space, ex-Christmas trees in the Los Angeles area and elsewhere will be reduced to wood chips and biodegraded into compost that nurtures new plants or provides a rich ground cover. It’s a solution that makes a lot of people happy:
“There is a whole new consciousness about throwing things away, and that includes Christmas trees,” says Kathi Delegal, recycling coordinator for Los Angeles County.
“People are starting to look at the tree as something that was grown for their pleasure and are feeling guilty about killing it after one use,” says Sara McEneaney, sanitary engineering associate for the City of Los Angeles.
“Having a Christmas tree is becoming a socially responsible act,” says Cynthia Nieman, marketing manager for Ikea U.S. West, whose Burbank store offered Christmas tree rentals--a long tradition for the Swedish-based home furnishings company. “Part of the responsibility is how you are going to dispose of it.”
These are three voices among the growing ranks of people involved in providing new options for old Christmas trees.
“Everybody’s catching on--it’s part of the whole environmental consciousness,” says McEneaney, who is project manager for the city of Los Angeles’ Christmas Tree Program. For the third year the city will provide seven drop-off locations from Saturday through Jan. 5 where trees will be recycled into wood chips for compost material. (See list below.) “We got 2,800 trees the first year, 5,000 the second and we expect more than 10,000 this year,” she says. “It will be a savings in landfill space of about 100 tons. What other choice do you have? Just throw it in the trash. I think we’re going to be seeing more recycling every year.”
Los Angeles is not the only city getting into the recycling act.
“More and more cities are coming on line with recycling programs for Christmas trees,” says Delegal. “Some offer both curbside pickup and drop off, others just do drop-off points.”
The county recycling hot line will give callers a list of cities that are conducting tree recycling programs, she says. The hot line, (800) 552-5218, is open from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday. “We have a steady flow of people calling from all over the county,” she says.
In addition, under the county’s new Green Waste Cover program, trees brought to landfills by trash haulers will not be dumped in the landfills, but will be composted and used for landfill cover, says Bill George, recycling coordinator for the County Sanitation Districts of Los Angeles County.
“We charge the haulers reduced . . . fees as incentive,” he says. “Since there are probably between 2 and 3 million Christmas trees in Los Angeles County, that makes a nice way for the trash haulers to say ‘Merry Christmas.’ ”
In the private sector, the Ikea store that opened in November in Burbank reported a smash hit with its Rent a Tree promotion this year. Under the plan, Ikea customers paid $10 for a tree rental lease and $10 for a deposit, explains spokeswoman Nieman.
“After Christmas when the customer returns the tree, they get their $10 deposit back. We mulch the tree right there on the outdoor lot, and give them a bag of compost.”
Christmas tree rental is a long-time tradition with the Swedish-based Ikea chain, she says. “It started in our stores in Germany. Europeans are dealing with such limited space they are more aware of the environment than we have been in this country.”
For its Southern California debut, Ikea in Burbank ordered 5,000 Douglas firs from Oregon and “cleared the lot within a week,” she says. “We were thrilled with the response. Basically we were changing peoples’ shopping habits for Christmas trees.”
The rented trees can be returned beginning Jan. 5 for a week. Based on experience with East Coast stores, Nieman is projecting that 80% to 85% of the trees will be returned. “The customers really seemed to appreciate that someone is willing to take the responsibility for that tree once Christmas is over,” she says.
“The whole debate over Christmas trees is tough,” she adds. “It’s such an emotional issues. Trees are a part of peoples’ childhood, and they want to pass it on to their children. At least they’re starting to be aware of what they should do once Christmas is over.”
For Los Angeles recyclers: From Dec. 29 through Jan. 5 (excluding New Year’s Day), take your Christmas tree to one of the city’s drop-off locations to be recycled into wood chips for compost material. Residents will receive a bag of compost when they bring in a tree. Hours: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Information: (800) CITY-SAN.
Drop-off locations: Sunland Sunland Park and Recreation Center 8651 Foothill Blvd. Encino Balboa Sport Center 17000 Burbank Blvd. Hollywood Hollywood Bowl 2301 N. Highland Ave. Venice Venice Lot 739 644 S. Venice Blvd. Highland Park Highland Park Senior Citizen Center 6200 York Blvd. Central Los Angeles Rancho Cienega Sports Center 5001 Rodeo Road Harbor City Harbor Regional Park 25700 Vermont Ave.
