Louisiana is losing a football field's worth of land every hour and a half, according to a 2019 New Yorker article by Elizabeth Kolbert. We can all do something to help by recycling our Christmas trees. Here is what you need to know:
JEFFERSON PARISH
You can either place your tree on the curb outside your home on Jan. 8, or bring it to a drop-off site.
Curb pick-up will occur Jan. 9 through Jan. 11.
If you want to cherish your tree for a bit longer, you can drop it off at 400 David Drive, Metairie or 6440 Lapalco Boulevard, Marrero from Jan. 4 through Jan. 14.
The Jefferson Parish Christmas tree recycling drop event will take place on January 25 from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. behind Cochiara's Marina in Lafitte. Volunteers under 18 can sign up here and adults can sign up here.
For more information, please contact the Jefferson Parish Department of Ecosystem and Coastal Management at 504-736-6719, email JPCoastalZone@JeffParish.net or visit www.JeffParish.net/Coastal.
ORLEANS PARISH
From Dec. 26 through Jan. 3, you can call 311 to request curbside pickup.
For scheduled pickup, place your trees on the curb by 5 a.m. Jan. 6 through Jan. 10.
You can also drop off your trees from Dec. 26 to Jan. 5 at 2930 Lafitte Ave. or Bodenger Park, 3400 Kansas St.
Residents in the French Quarter and Downtown Development District should place their trees on the curb by 4 a.m. on Jan. 9.
Only natural, unflocked trees that are free of tree stands and all trimmings (decorations, ornaments, tinsel and lights) will be collected for recycling. Flocked, artificial trees, trees in bags or trees with unremoved trimmings will be collected with garbage and transported to the landfill. Trees are not to be placed on the neutral grounds, as this delays the collection process.
Working collaboratively, the City’s Department of Sanitation; waste management contractors; the City’s Office of Resilience and Sustainability; U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; and the Louisiana National Guard will collect, sort and bundle the recycled trees. They will then be placed in selected coastal zones to restore wetlands lost to erosion and the sinking of the land (subsidence).
In 2022, more than 5,000 Christmas trees were collected in Orleans Parish after the holidays and then airlifted by the Louisiana National Guard into the Bayou Sauvage National Wildlife Refuge to create new marsh habitat. After the trees are dropped by helicopter, workers arrive by boat to move them to their final position. Over the course of this program, recycled Christmas trees have restored an area of marsh equal to almost 200 football fields. The trees also create important habitat for birds, fish, crabs, crawfish and shrimp.
St. Charles Parish
Starting Dec. 30, residents can drop off their trees at the Ormond Sandbag Location (next to 1901 Ormond Blvd in Destrehan), and The West Bank Bridge Park in Luling until Jan. 16.
Trees can also be placed curbside from Jan. 13 to Jan. 17 for collection.
To recycle your tree, make sure it meets the following guidelines:
• No flocked trees
• No artificial trees
• No painted trees
• No lights, garland, tinsel, ornaments, tree stands or plastic bags
