Christmas tree pickup begins

“We are trying to make it easy,” said La Mariana, whose company accommodates roughly 95,000 San Mateo County households between East Palo Alto and Burlingame.

The process, which has grown increasingly simple for customers, is leading to mind-bending amounts of trees getting hauled away for recycling, as La Mariana said more than 233 tons of organic material was collected last year.

“That’s a lot of trees,” laughed La Mariana.

So long as the ornaments and the stand are removed, collectors will take most trees left near the green bin, said La Mariana. Those taller than 10 feet should be cut in half and placed in the bin, he said.

RethinkWaste is also accepting flocked trees this year, a departure from earlier policy precluding the agency from collecting those painted with a chemical spray designed to replicate the appearance of snow.

He noted though flocked trees will be transferred to a landfill, while all others will be processed at Recology stations in either San Jose or the Central Valley, said La Mariana.

“They take it, grind it up or use it as mulch or composting,” said La Mariana.

Once the trees are recycled, La Mariana said the finished compost is available for free for locals to pick up from the transfer station. Up to two buckets of compost can be taken, or more can be given to local school or organizations seeking to start a community garden, he said.

“It’s an excellent, quality product. It creates this wonderful, nutrient-rich soil amendment,” said La Mariana, who noted the compost available to locals should be mixed with soil for planting.

La Mariana emphasized that locals know their trees can live a second life beyond spreading holiday cheer.

“It is really important that people understand that trees have a material value,” he said. “They are not just going into the landfill.”

For those in South San Francisco, Brisbane, Millbrae or other northern county communities serviced by the South San Francisco Scavenger Company, standless trees left near by the green bin will be picked up for free on regular collection days as well. Trees taller than 6 feet should be cut in half, and all decorations and tinsel should be removed.

For RethinkWaste customers, La Mariana said no additional staffing is needed to accommodate the uptick in tree collections, but the service will suspend pickup of other bulky items for January.

Should customers wait until after January to dispose of their tree, La Mariana said they should be cut in half and placed in the green bin to be collected on their regular trash day.

In all, La Mariana lauded the collection of efforts required to responsibly process the trees, with an eye on assuring their lifespan continues beyond the holiday season.

“It’s a great program,” he said. “Everybody wins.”

If only the same could be said for getting rid of that sweater that doesn’t quite fit right.

austin@smdailyjournal.com

(650) 344-5200 ext. 105