Recycle Your Christmas Tree And Help The Beach At The Same Time

Christmas is over, so the time has come to either pack up your artificial tree and stuff it into storage for another year, or if you have a real tree, to drag it out to the curb.

But if you elected for a live tree this year, you can kill two birds with one stone and feel good about it by disposing of your Christmas tree while helping to protect our Jersey Shore beaches at the same time.

The first weekend of the new year, Island Beach State Park is collecting your (formerly) live Christmas trees to help keep the beach's dunes healthy.

Officials ask that you of course remove decorations and lights first, and on Saturday, January 4th, you can drop them off at IBSP's A23 parking lot between 10 A.M. and 2 P.M.

The trees help protect the dunes from erosion. According to NJ.com:

Trees at the Shore can aid and improve the dune systems on the beaches by forming sand and soil erosion barriers, capturing sand that is pushed by northeasterly winds

I know that we don't have to say this (right?), but real trees only, please.

You can click here for more information on Island Beach State Park's official Facebook page.