Christmas Trees (Real) Special Instructions ALL AREAS – Your community’s residential garbage and recycling service provider will accept Christmas trees for recycling in the green waste cart. Trees must be cut into 4 foot or shorter lengths, with no tree parts greater than 6 inches in diameter. Tinsel, ribbons, stands, and all other decorations must be removed. Flocked trees are not accepted. Place tree parts in your green waste cart. Atascadero Waste Management- Atascadero Waste Management will be picking up trees December 27, 2021, to January 14, 2022. Atascadero Waste Management encourages all customers to cut their trees in half and place in GW cart on the curb during regular service day. For any trees that cannot be cut and placed in green waste please call the local office to schedule a pickup. This also applies to multi-family complexes. Atascadero Waste Management would like multi-family complexes to call once they have 5 or more trees. Please remove trees stands and decorations. No flocked trees. If you would like further information, please call Atascadero Waste Management at (805) 466-3636. MidState Solid Waste- Accepts Christmas trees for recycling after December 25. Trees must be cut into4 foot or shorter lengths, with no tree parts greater than 6 inches in diameter. Place tree parts in your green waste cart. Tinsel, ribbons, strands, and all other decorations must be removed. Flocked trees are not accepted and must go to the landfill or cut and fit into the trash cart. If you do not have a green waste collection, contact your service provider for pick up. Christmas trees not in a cart and placed on the curb are subject to additional fees. If you would like further information, please call MidState Solid Waste at (805) 434-9112. Paso Robles Waste and Recycle – Paso Robles Waste and Recycle collects Christmas trees for two weeks following Christmas. A special route is run specifically for live undecorated and unflocked trees. During this period, there is no need for trees to be cut down. Christmas trees need to be placed next to the cart, not in the green waste cart. Outside of this two-week period, trees may be cut down to fit within the green waste cart. If you would like further information, please call Paso Robles Waste and Recycling at (805) 238-2381. San Miguel Garbage- San Miguel Garbage collects Christmas Trees on your normal pickup days from the day after Christmas through the second week of January each year. Please remove stands and decorations and place the trees next to your regular trash containers. If you would like further information, please call San Miguel Garbage at (805) 467-9283. Waste Connections: Mission Country Disposal, Morro Bay Garbage, San Luis Garbage, and South County Sanitary – Accepts Christmas trees for recycling after December 25. Trees must be cut into 4 foot or shorter lengths, with no tree parts greater than 6 inches in diameter. Place tree parts in your green waste cart. Tinsel, ribbons, light strands, tree stands, and all other decorations must be removed. Flocked trees are not accepted and must go to the landfill or cut and fit into the trash cart. If you do not have a green waste collection, contact your service provider for pick up. Christmas trees not in a cart and placed on the curb are subject to additional fees. If you would like further information, please call your service provider at (805) 543-0875. *Christmas lights are trash. If you do not have a green waste collection, contact your service provider for pick up. Chicago Grade Landfill, Cold Canyon Landfill, Santa Maria Transfer Station, Paso Robles Landfill and North County Recycling also accept Christmas trees for recycling. Fees apply. Remove All Ornaments, Lights and Tinsel Before you recycle your live Christmas tree, make sure that it is free of all ornaments, tree stands, lights and tinsel. Flocked Trees Are Not Recyclable If your tree has flocking (sprayed-on fake snow), it can’t be recycled and will have to go in the trash instead. Ways to Reduce Decorate a Potted Tree Instead It may be unconventional, but skipping the traditional Christmas tree (real or fake) altogether and decorating a potted tree you’ve bought or have in your home is a truly green way to have a tree for the holidays. Buy a Rooted Tree and Plant It After the Holidays Next holiday season, buy a tree with roots (it can be balled and burlap or containerized) and plant it in your yard after you use it. Did You Know? Christmas Trees as Job Creators According to the National Christmas Tree Association (NCTA), the Christmas tree industry employs more than 100,000 people in the United States. The Environmental Benefits of Christmas Trees Although they’re planted just to be cut down and used as a decoration once they’ve reached maturity, Christmas tree farms have a positive impact on the environment. Each acre of Christmas trees produces enough oxygen for the daily needs of 18 people.