As the end of the holiday season nears, Lake County residents wondering what to do with their natural Christmas trees have a variety of options. Many of the possibilities are free, and some may turn the trees into wood chips lining the trail in a nearby forest preserve.
John Nelson, chief operations officer for the Lake County Forest Preserves District, said people can take their tree to a nearby forest preserve — there are eight sites available around the county — to place it in a designated container. There is an ecological reason to recycle the tree.
“They can’t be disposed of in a landfill,” Nelson said. “If they are taken there, they will degrade and cause more problems. People can also compost them in their backyard. That is another option.”
The Lake County Forest Preserves District, LRS and possibly other waste haulers provide free natural Christmas tree disposal — artificial trees are not eligible — to most residents in Lake County in an effort to keep them out of landfills.
Though all county residents can take their trees to one of the eight forest preserve locations, Chris Manley, LRS’s general manager for northern Illinois, said people living in communities where his company is the waste hauler can leave them curbside for pickup.
For those who have a different waste hauler, Manley said most trash disposal companies offer a similar service. The requirements can vary by community, including the deadline. Towns served by LRS offer the service for between two to four weeks.
“You should check with your municipality,” Manley said. “Most of them have provisions in their contract with the municipality dealing with Christmas trees. They vary.”
Nelson said all trees must be stripped of ornaments, lights, cords and other attached items before being taken to the forest preserve. They cannot be placed in bags. Manley said the same is true for people leaving their tree curbside.
While Manley said LRS’s deadline varies depending on the city or village, Nelson said people have until Feb. 1 to take their trees to forest preserves. In Waukegan, they should be left curbside on a resident’s normal pickup day.
“Some people want to get it out of the way before the needles start to fall on the floor, while others want to hang onto the holiday spirit as long as they can,” he said.
Trees taken to a forest preserve will mostly be turned into wood chips for placement on trails in many of the forest preserves district’s properties. Nelson said the chips eventually wear out and need to be replaced. An ongoing supply is necessary.
Manley said LRS takes the trees to nearby businesses that have a use for the wood. Generally, they will be turned into chips or mulch. Some municipalities collect them for a week to dump them in lakes or ponds for fish cribs. LRS gathers them later in January.
Once someone enters the forest preserve, Nelson said there will be signs directing them to the container for the trees. They must be left in the designated area. The preserves are open from 6:30 a.m. through sunset daily.
The eight locations are Grant Woods Forest Preserve in Ingleside, Greenbelt Forest Preserve in North Chicago, Half Day Forest Preserve in Vernon Hills, Heron Creek Forest Preserve in Lake Zurich, Lakewood Forest Preserve near Wauconda, Old School Forest Preserve in Mettawa, Ryerson Conservation Area in Riverwoods and Van Patten Woods Forest Preserve in Wadsworth.
