An estimated 160,000 tonnes of Christmas trees are put into landfill each year. WSR shares tips to ensure your tree is recycled. Even with the best intentions some trees end up in landfill anyway due to improper removal of decorations or misunderstanding collection times. Recycled Christmas trees can have positive second uses which are wasted in landfill.
A Sad End For a Festive Icon
Between 6 and 8 million Christmas trees are sold in the UK each year. They are given proud positions in our living rooms. We dress them up in shiny, eye-catching decorations in order to out-compete our neighbours or best last year’s efforts. However approximately 160,000 tonnes of these trees will meet a sad end in landfill in January. Every year we sling them out the back door or lean them against recycling bins, and forget all about them.
Eva Preston, waste management specialist from WSR Recycling, commented: ‘Seeing that hundreds of thousands of tonnes of Christmas trees are still ending up as waste each year is concerning. Even simple things, like leaving tinsel or baubles on the tree, can prevent it from being recycled properly. Small changes at home can make a big difference in keeping these trees out of landfill.’
Key Tips From the WSR to Recycle Your Christmas Tree
Eva Preston shares the following tips:
Clear All Decorations – this is the number one reason trees are rejected for recycling. All tinsel and baubles must be removed.
Keep Your Tree Upright – upright trees in easily accessible locations are collected more quickly and efficiently by recyclers
Check Collection Schedules – find out on your local council website the designated pick up time for your Christmas tree. Or return it to a local drop off point
Put To Use In The Garden – repurpose your tree as compost or mulch and use branches to build wildlife shelters
Re-Use Artificial Trees – keep your artificial tree safely stored in the attic to prolong its lifespan and reduce plastic to landfill
The Benefits of Repurposing
Properly recycled Christmas trees can have positive second impacts in our communities. For example, their remains may be used as garden compost or woodchip for paths, fuel or weed suppression. Tree branches may even be used in local flood prevention projects. It is easy to forget that natural trees can be rejected for recycling if proper methods of disposal are not followed.
Eva Preston, WSR, has a simple summary for why we should all recycle our Christmas tree: ‘When it goes to landfill, it simply becomes wasted potential.”
A Second Life for Our Christmas Trees
Positive recycling campaigns such as that of the WSR help spread awareness to reduce the number of our festive trees in landfill. In the business of the Christmas period it is easy to forget about the proper disposal of our trees. Companies such as the WSR remind us of easy ways to ensure these trees will be properly recycled and not end up as landfill waste.
