The holidays can be a whirlwind, and if you’re ready to wrap things up for the season, there’s an easy way to give your Christmas tree a second life.
It’s a chilly Monday morning at Cesar Chavez Park in south Phoenix. There’s already a small pile of live Christmas trees waiting to be picked up and taken to the city’s composting facility.
“So every year, city of Phoenix, what we do is we open a drop off location at select parks. So this year, it's at 13 parks and two [Sunbelt Rental locations] in order for residents to be able to come and drop off their natural Christmas trees,' said Verdiana Cervantes, a zero waste analyst with the city.
She says the city will take trees, wreaths — even poinsettias. Collection runs through Jan. 9.
There are a few things to keep in mind.
“So no fake trees, all natural and, of course, making sure that there's no decor still on them, there's no frost, any, like, frosted material on it, any wires, making sure it's completely clean," she said.
Celebrate New Year's by cleaning up
As you prepare to count down to the new year, Phoenix officials have a few simple tips to help you celebrate — and clean up — responsibly.
She says food-grade glass — like those wine and champagne bottles — can head to the recycle bin.
As for fireworks, that’s a different story.
“A lot of people just put the fireworks straight directly in the trash after, but we want to make sure that it's completely out. So soaking them and then throwing them away, because sometimes even though you think the firework might be out, it might not, and it could spark a fire in your trash.”
Phoenix tips to reduce holiday waste
- Reuse gift bags and wrapping paper.
- Turn paper shopping bags into gift bags or wrapping paper; magazine pages or newspaper comics also make colorful gift wraps.
- An alternative to gift bags is to use decorative reusable shopping bags as gift bags. They can be used all year long and are often less expensive than paper gift bags.
- Donate used holiday decorations and lights instead of throwing them away.
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