Conservation group giving Christmas trees a second life
Posted January 6, 2024 8:16 pm.
Christmas trees from across the region are finding a second life as one conservation group accepted hundreds on Saturday to be used in future projects.
“People can upcycle their Christmas tree. They donate it to us and we’ll use it,” says Christine Bowen, Restoration Project Lead with Conservation Halton.
It’s a program Conservation Halton runs at their headquarters in Burlington every year. Anyone can drop off their used tree on the first Saturday after the New Year where it will be stored and used as restoration work gets underway in the spring.
According to Conservation Halton, each year roughly 1,000 trees are used to help mitigate erosion or to narrow creek beds that have become too wide, shallow and warm.
“A lot of our fish species, they need clear water and cool water,” explains Bowen.
The trees will be strategically bound together and held to the creek bed with wooden stakes. Over time the trees will collect sediment, both narrowing the creek and providing a new location to plant native species.
“That’s going to provide habitat for our fish, helps shade the water, as well as capture that sediment so that it’s more clear,” she adds.
Residents dropping off a tree or two say it’s nice to see Christmas trees reclaiming some of their former glory by finding a new purpose.
“You know at Christmas it’s so nice to be able to have the tree and make it look beautiful but it’s so short-lived,” explains Ashlee Livingstone who dropped off her tree Saturday afternoon.
The usefulness of trees collected for natural restoration work is greatly expected to outstrip their Christmas lifespan with narrowing projects typically seeing results in as little as five years.
