The Knox County Solid Waste Office, in partnership with Keep Knoxville Beautiful, has for the past seventeen years sponsored Christmas Tree-cycling. The event, which is held the first Saturday following New Year's Day, provides an opportunity for area residents to dispose of their tree, and to take home fresh evergreen mulch if they choose.
Greenwaste, consisting of leaves, brush, logs, tree branches, grass, etc., typically makes up 20-30% of the total municipal solid waste stream. By recycling the Christmas trees, Knox County hopes to raise awareness about the advantage of keeping this type of material out of area landfills, and instead utilizing it to produce mulch and other beneficial soil ammendments which can be returned to the landscape.
Trees may be dropped off at no charge at any of these three locations: The Knox County Greenwaste Recycling Facility on Joe Daniels Road in the Solway community; The Knox County Greenwaste Recycling Facility on Water Plant Road in the Forks of the River Industrial Park; and the Knox County Solid Waste and Recycling Convenience Center on Neal Road in Halls. Trees must be cleaned of all ornaments, lights, wire, string or anything else that might jam or damage the chipping machines. Trees may be dropped off in advance, but the free mulch is only available the day of the event.
