Posted: Thursday 5th January 2017 by Community
Christmas trees going to landfill (c) Grundon Waste Management
It's the last day of Christmas. Time to switch off the fairy lights, take down the tree, and tidy away the trimmings for another year.
Taking your tree to a landfill site is a sad end for that sparkly festive feature that lit up your room.
Did you know, last year, 6,000,000 trees were dumped into landfill?
But if you bought a real tree, with a little bit of effort you can put it to good use or recycle it effectively, helping save the planet at the same time.
.jpg)
Top 5 Ways to Recycle your Real Christmas Tree
1. Local coucils offer great options for taking away your Christmas tree for recycling - the service on offer will vary depening on where you live. In 2017, residents in Gloucester, Cheltenham and the Forest of Dean can leave their tree out for collection on their usual green waste collection day. While people in Gloucester without a green waste license can call to arrange a collection. Stroud residents can take theirs to a number of different sites, as can anyone living in Tewkesbury. South Gloucestershire residents have a number of options, details available on their website.
2. Potted trees will live happily in the garden, and can be used year after year. Get your tree outside, and water it well to help it recover from being inside in the warm. If you want a bigger tree next year just put it in a bigger pot to allow the roots to grow.
3. Once potted and happily rehomed in your garden, your tree will make the perfect natural bird feeding station. Hang bird treats from the branches and help make every day like Christmas for our garden birds. You can find recipes in the archive of our Adventure Calendar, here, here and here.
4. Why not go the extra mile and have your tree chipped for a happy and healthy garden? Chippers can be bought relatively cheaply or hired for a day rate from various companies. The chips can be used to make a garden more appealing to the eye, turned in mulch or composted.
5. If you'd rather stay in the warm with your Christmas tree there are homely things you can make too. Saw the trunk into discs, sand and decorate for rustic mug coasters and make pine needle potpourri as a homemade treat for friends.
But it's not just the tree - spare a thought for the decorations too. Last year nearly 500 tonnes of Christmas lights were dumped in landfill alongside the trees. But if you don't want to keep them, you can recycle them at lots of recycling centres - check your local centre to see if they can help.
Recycling tips provided by Grundon Waste management, long-time supporters of Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust.
Read Community's latest blog entries.
Comments
There are currently no comments, why not be the first.