Start a Christmas Tree Recycling Program

by Raquel Fagan

Christmas Tree recycling is a huge part of the holiday season, and has been growing tremendously over the past years. But what if there isn’t a program in your neck of the woods? Don’t sweat it, we got a solution. Start your own!

Ok, so you might have a few questions before you start driving around the neighborhood, shoving trees into your truck. To help out, Earth911 partnered with the National Christmas Tree Association, to present a six-step process for starting your own Christmas tree recycling program. The steps are easy to follow, and help lay out everything from setup to marketing. Instructions include:

Evaluating the Resources in Your Community

Community support is essential in establishing a successful Christmas Tree recycling program.

Creating an Outline for Your Program

The collection process is often the area of the program that requires the most resources—particularly in volunteer/staff time.

Creating a Budget

Once you’ve gathered your partners and determined your resources, it’s time to decide how to best allocate those resources. Budgets for Christmas tree recycling programs vary greatly, depending on the scope of the program, community support and the number of people involved.

Getting the Word Out

A recycling program can only be successful if people know about it. And just as important as knowing the time and location is understanding why Christmas Tree recycling is so important.

Implementing Your Program

Planing for extra back-up, checking trees for ornaments and keeping track of trees collected is just the beginning of getting the program off the ground.

Evaluating Your Program

Keep a file from year to year with key statistics and facts about your recycling program. Not only is this helpful for promotion purposes, but it also makes the transition between recycling coordinators easier.

Get Started!

This is just the beginning. To get detailed information, please check out:
How to Start A Christmas Tree Recycling Program - Part One
How to Start a Christmas Tree Recycling Program - Part Two

Raquel Fagan

Raquel Fagan is Executive Editor of Earth911.com.

3 Comments

Nitsuh Adefris

posted on November 12th, 2008 at 1:54 am

Really the idea is very interesting. Just this have to be done on different occasions and areas.Since I’m a university student I want to launch this program in my university. Though please give more detailed information about the program to my e-mail address.Thank you for your help.
GOD Bless you
Mike

posted on November 13th, 2008 at 5:34 pm

This is really a great idea, I would love to see some examples of people who have done this and had success.
Christmas Tree Coalition Blog » Blog Archive » Green Christmas Ideas–No. 1

posted on December 2nd, 2008 at 9:12 am

[...] –If your town doesn’t offer a tree recycling program, try organizing a collection yourself! Here are some tips from Earth 911 [...]

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Start a Christmas Tree Recycling Program