Anyone looking for a way to give a gift to the environment need look no further than their Christmas tree.

Residents of Pierce County may dispose of their Christmas trees in an environmentally friendly program through the Public Works and Utilities department called treecyle by leaving their unflocked trees at the curb during pickup time.

Others may bring their trees to a disposal center.

Trees collected through curbside yardwaste programs or brought to disposal centers are composted into a soil supplement which is used by gardeners. The program is intended to save landfill space, with the benefit of enhancing soil quality and reducing the need for chemical fertilizers.

Before recycling a tree organizers request people remove the tree stand, tinsel, decorations, garland, nails and staples,

Flocked trees are not recyclable and need to be discarded in the trash.

To recycle curbside, the tree needs to be divided into lengths no more than 4 feet and placed inside a yardwaste container.

If the tree doesn’t fit at once, it may be disposed of over several weeks on regularly scheduled yardwaste pickup days.

Trees may be taken to locations including the Hidden Valley transfer station at 17925 Meridian Street East near South Hill from 8 a.m. to 5:45 p.m., seven days a week, Prairie Ridge residential waste drop box at 11710 Prairie Ridge Drive between Bonney Lake and South Prairie, from 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. seven days a week.

Facilities are closed on Christmas day and New Year’s day.

For more information or for other recycling locations, call 253-798-4115, or visit www.piercecountywa.org/treecycle.