GREENWICH — Christmas has come and gone — so the town is offering its traditional tree recycling program to dispose of unwanted holiday spruces and firs.
The town Parks and Trees Division recycles discarded Christmas trees by turning them into wood chips for mulch or compost.
Residents can bring their trees to Byram Park, Bruce Park, Greenwich Point and the Holly Hill Recycling Center through Jan. 31. All trees must be brought in undecorated and residents are reminded to remove all ornaments, tinsel, lights and tree stands.
Trees will be accepted at Byram Park and Bruce Park from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays. In Byram, the trees are being collected at the parking lot by the concession stand; in Bruce Park, trees are collected in the parking lot by the children’s playground opposite the entrance to the Bruce Museum.
At Greenwich Point, trees will be collected from 6 a.m. to sunset at the first parking lot upon entry to the beach area across from the nature center. People going to Holly Hill can place trees in the yard waste area. The facility is open from 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. weekdays and 7 a.m. to noon Saturdays.
There is no charge for the tree recycling.
Town Parks and Recreation Director Joseph Sicliano has recommended that residents participate in the program
“It’s important to recycle,” Siciliano said during last year’s collection. “There’s so many uses for the chips after — and this keeps the trees from ending up with the rest of the trash at Holly Hill or in some landfill somewhere. It’s easy and convenient and we hope a lot of people in town take advantage of the service.”
The town did not have an exact accounting of how many trees are brought in each year for recycling but Siciliano has termed it a “significant” amount.
According to the town, recycled trees are used to prevent beachfront erosion, stabilizing lake and river shores, manage river delta sedimentation and as a fish habitat. By sinking the unchipped trees in a lake, the town said, it serves as a cover for young fish and sustaining insects.
For people interested in keeping their trees on their property after the holidays, Christmas trees can be used as a songbird or wildlife habitat. Place them near bird feeding areas so birds will use them as shelter from wind and cold and as cover from predators. Pine cones filled with peanut butter, fruit and suet and seed mixes can give birds an extra treat.
People can also use the trees on their property for erosion control by placing them in gullies or by cutting off boughs and putting them in flower beds to protect roots and bulbs from the winter cold.
kborsuk@greenwichtime.com