Chicago residents can drop off their Christmas trees at 25 locations across the city, including some West Side parks.
The city’s annual holiday tree recycling program m runs from Jan. 5 through Saturday, Jan. 19.
“Recycling your holiday tree gives it new life,” Department of Streets and Sanitation Commissioner John F. Tully said in a statement. “We encourage residents to recycle live trees to help keep them out of alleys, helping to ensure that valuable organic material is diverted from landfills.”
Live holiday trees can be dropped off inside tree corrals set up at any one of the 25 designated Chicago Park District locations. The holiday tree recycling program is not able to accept wreaths or garlands. Ornaments, lights and tinsels must be removed before the tree is dropped off, and trees should be removed from any bags when placed in the tree recycling corrals.
Trees recycled through the program are turned into mulch, wood chips for use at Chicago Park Districts and materials for use by the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago.
Since the program’s inception in 1990, more than 268,000 trees have been mulched, including more than 18,000 last year.
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