Soon, ornaments and decorations will be taken down and put away, and some families will wonder what to do with their Christmas tree when the holidays are over.
This year, Burlington County residents have additional options to recycle their live Christmas trees.
Residents can bring undecorated trees to the Burlington County Fairgrounds at 1990 Jacksonville-Jobstown Road in Springfield now through Sunday, Jan. 11, to have them mulched by the Burlington County Parks System. (Residents bringing trees should enter the park at Gate 2 and place trees within the enclosed barricade. The park is open daily from dawn to dusk).
No artificial, bagged or flocked trees will be accepted. All stands, lights, tinsel, wires, ornaments and garland must be removed.
Trees will be mulched on Jan. 11 during the inaugural Mulch Fest from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Residents are invited to come and take mulch for their home gardens or landscaping project. Bring your own tools and containers for mulch.
Recycling trees also helps reduce waste in the county landfill and saves towns and property taxpayers from paying larger landfill fees.
In addition to the Fairgrounds drop-off, live trees can also be brought to the Burlington County Resource Recovery Complex at 22000 Burlington-Columbus Road in Florence to be chipped and composted.
The county’s free Treecycle service is offered at the complex Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays from 7 a.m. to noon for live trees only.
The complex cannot recycle artificial, bagged or flocked trees. As with the Fairgrounds drop-off, all stands, lights, tinsel, wires, ornaments and garland must be removed.
Holiday lights can be recycled by dropping them off at the Resource Recovery Complex. They cannot be discarded in recycling cans.
Several municipalities also offer curbside collection and/or a drop-off sites for discarded trees. Residents should contact their town to verify when collections occur and learn about any special requirements or restrictions.
For more information, call (609) 499-1001 or email recycle@co.burlington.nj.us.
