RESIDENTS putting up real trees this Christmas are being reminded they do not have to be lumbered with the needle-shedding nuisances in the New Year – thanks to a free drop-off scheme run by Erewash council.
The festive firs can be disposed of at collection points in Ilkeston and Long Eaton. The trees will be recycled for use as biomass.
The drop-off points will be in the car parks of Ilkeston’s Rutland Recreation Ground, next to the fire station, and Long Eaton’s West Park Leisure Centre.
They will open prior to the festive season – lasting from Friday 22 December to mid-January. In the past some trees have been dumped as early as Boxing Day.
Residents are also urged to do even more to make it a GREEN Christmas by making good use of their blue bins.
Brown bins can also be used for recycling during the winter pause of garden waste collections.
Changes to bin collection days over the holidays are detailed on the Erewash Borough Council website.
Those due to be emptied on Monday 25 December will be picked up on the previous Friday (22 December). A similar switch applies to New Year’s Day (Monday 1 January) with bins being emptied on the previous Friday (29 December).
Meanwhile the festive season will see the town halls in Ilkeston and Long Eaton close at 2pm on Friday 22 December until Tuesday 2 January, when they will reopen at 10am.
Councillor Joel Bryan, who is Erewash’s Lead Member for Environment, said of the recycling drive:
“While we all love presents at Christmas it is also a time when many residents end up having to get rid of a mountain of packaging. Our message to local people is to give a little gift to the environment – by checking that when rubbish can be recycled it is put in the right bin.”
