Something fishy about Christmas trees

TRUST the Americans to come up with novel ways of getting rid of unwanted and wilted Christmas trees in an environmentally-friendly way.

Many of the 400,000 Christmas trees that adorned Irish homes during the festive season are currently being recycled through various, conventional means. Local authorities play a useful role in taking in trees for shredding, mulching or composting, but thrown out or unsold Christmas trees can also have other uses.

In parts of the US trees are helping to create habitat for fish in otherwise barren lakes. The trees are taken to a different lake each year, where volunteers bundle them and secure them to the lake bed. Within days, the newly-denuded branches become covered with algae which attract aquatic insects, fish and, ultimately, anglers.