West Side sites offer free Christmas tree recycling
Q: We’re new to this community and want to know what we can do with our Christmas tree now that it’s been taken down. — U.T., West Side
A: It always startles me how rapidly folks are to dismantle Christmas, especially since today is the seventh day of the season, so be on the lookout for seven swans a-swimming! Meanwhile, for those of you who are looking for “tree-cycling,” you’re in luck.
Jan. 2 through 15, those of us on the West Side can take our used cut trees to Ladera Golf Course at 3401 Ladera NW. We’re lucky here in the Bernalillo County area to have a way to tree-cycle those useful creatures. In fact, there are three locations here in the metro area accepting the trees. Along with the Ladera locale, there’s Montessa Park Convenience Center at 3512 Los Picaros SE, serving the south area, and finally, the Eagle Rock Convenience Center at 6301 Eagle Rock in northeast Albuquerque.
Doing a bit of research, I found that the City of Rio Rancho and Sandoval County offer tree-cycling too. Jan. 2 through 13, residents in that area can deliver the trees to the Rio Rancho Sports Complex at 3501 High Resort Blvd., or the Sandoval County Landfill at 2708 Iris Road (Mondays through Saturdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.)
I couldn’t find any posted info about Valencia County, i.e., the Belen and Los Lunas areas, and if I get any info I’ll pass it on, but hopefully they are on board with some sort of program.
The rationale behind treecycling is multifold. First, keeping such reusable green waste out of the landfills saves a huge amount of room. Second, the majority of the trees are put through a chipper and made into compostable, marvelously-scented mulch to be applied in landscaping projects. Just know that there are a few “rules” that apply to the tree-cycle programs and by adhering to them you will help keep these projects safe for the workers tending to the work and more likely to continue. Please remove any and all decorations from the tree. Then, make sure there is no sort of stand attached to the tree. These things can hurt both equipment and the workers, so be caring about that process. If you decorated with live garland or wreaths, they need to be unstrung and/or taken off the frames before chipping and our municipalities don’t have the manpower to dedicate to this sort of project. The wire frame from a wreath can pose quite a threat to safety, so be thoughtful and caring, OK?
Then, I’m going to ask that when you transport your spent treasure, you tie or tarp it down while on the move. Yearly, I see trees in the back of trucks motoring around town without a thought that perhaps they could fly out of said truck. Argh! Inevitably you’ll see one or two on the sides of our roads and they can be the cause of quite a bit of mayhem, so be thoughtfully safe and in turn keep me safe — please! Then, don’t abandon your tree in an arroyo or wherever. It doesn’t take much effort to give the thing that brought so much loveliness into your world a chance to continue its good work. Tree-cycle! It’s a good thing to do while you’re out there getting ready to start the New Year Digging In!