HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — This year, Hillsborough County is encouraging residents to repurpose their Christmas trees or dispose of them properly.
To extend the life of your tree after the Holidays, you can try turning the tree into mulch or compost, a bird feeder, or use it to create a shelter for wildlife.
”Repurposing it is another way to ensure that we are doing our best in keeping waste out of the landfill," Damien Tramel with Hillsborough County Solid Waste Management said. "That we're not processing the waste at a cost and that we're not burning the waste as well. So repurposing is the primary way to remove that waste out of the system.”
Tramel said mulching is the primary way people repurpose their trees. To do that, you may need a chipper, or Hillsborough Solid Waste Management can turn it into mulch for you.
If you plan on disposing of your tree, you need to do it correctly.
First, take off all decorations and ornaments. You can then cut the tree into four feet sections and leave it at the end of your curb. The county will pick it up on your normal yard waste collection day.
Alternatively, you can drop the tree off at a yard waste site.
There are two in the county located at:
- 13001 U.S. 41 in Gibsonton
- 8001 West Linebaugh Avenue in Tampa
They're open Monday through Saturday from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. The sites will be closed on New Year's Day.
If you are not a Hillsborough County resident, you can dispose of your tree at a County Yard Waste Processing Facility by paying a tonnage fee.
