Recycle Your 2009 Christmas Tree in Atlanta and the Metro Area

As we all become more aware of the need to be responsible for the environment, control waste, and live as green as possible, the question arises of how to properly dispose of a live Christmas tree. It is no longer enough to drag it to the curb or throw it on the trash dump. What is a green-living person to do?

Of course, one option is to have a live tree, and replant it after the holidays. But if you want a big live tree, that option won't serve. So the next logical step is Christmas tree recycling.

If you live in Atlanta or the metro area, you are in luck, as sponsors Home Depot, NBC Atlanta (WXIA-TV11) and The Davey Tree Company join with Keep Georgia Beautiful and the Georgia Deparment of Human Affairs band together with a dedicated group of volunteers to host what they bill as "the nation's largest Christmas tree recycling party," Bring One for the Chipper. The Davey Tree Company donates their equipment and services to do the chipping.

There are over 320 locations to bring you tree to be recycled into chips statewide, and over 100 of them are in the metro Atlanta area. These locations are easy to find using the search engine on the Keep Georgia Beautiful website. Last year, drop-off points included many Home Depot stores, Agnes Scott College, Grant Park, and other easy-to-find spots.

In the twenty years that this event has been going on, nearly five million trees have been chipped! The chips are then turned into mulch for playgrounds, city parks and individual homes. (The Keep Georgia Beautiful site has a link to click for free mulch delivery.) Some of the trees are also sunk into lakes to provide fish habitats and used for other government beautification projects.

The date for Bring One for the Chipper this year is January 9, 2010.

So help the environment and join the party! You can enjoy your beautiful tree with a clear conscience, knowing that its usefulness will not end when you take off the lights and ornaments, but will continue to benefit and beautify your city in a "reincarnated" form!

If you would like to do even more, volunteers to collect the trees are always needed. Learn more at Keep Georgia Beautiful!