615,000 Natural Christmas Trees Expected to be Used This Year

Working with the professional staff of the National Christmas Tree Association (http://www.christmastree.org/home.cfm), Colorado Recycles estimates that approximately 615,000 natural Christmas trees will be set up by homeowners in Colorado this year. Of those, approximately 523,000 - 554,000 will be placed in community based recycling programs.

The model for forecasting use that is employed by the NCTA estimates that 29% of households in America will opt for a natural Christmas tree. According to the Colorado Department of Local Affairs, there were 2,118,942 households in Colorado in 2006. While total households have increased in numbers in 2007, no estimates are currently available beyond the official 2006 numbers. By applying the NCTA percentage to Colorado households, a total of 615,000 real Christmas trees are expected to be purchased or cut and erected in Colorado this season.

Recycling rates are difficult to calculate or estimate because many people who respond to survey questions do not realize that they are recycling when they put their tree at the curb. Often, people think that because their trash hauling service collects their tree that it just being taken away as trash and do not realize that the tree may be headed for a mulching machine. The professional pollsters used by the NCTA consistently report that 85% - 90% of those polled report that they place their old Christmas tree in a recycling program.

There is no reason to believe that Colorado households act differently than those on a nationwide basis so the participation rate should be comparable. Most Colorado recycled Christmas trees are turned into mulch for landscaping use by homeowners and local government programs.

Local communities can use this same methodology to estimate the number of Christmas trees expected to be used and recycled in their communities. The Colorado Department of Local Affairs maintains statistical estimates of the numbers of households in counties and cities.