Keep Fayette Beautiful, the local affiliate of the national Keep America Beautiful program, is inviting local residents to “bring one for the chipper” Jan. 8.

KFB is sponsoring six local sites where residents can bring their Christmas trees for recycling Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Each participant will receive a free tree seedling, while supplies last.

Volunteers also are needed. Anyone interested can phone KFB executive director Marie Short at 770-233-9468.

“This annual event diverts more than 300,000 Christmas trees from landfills throughout the state and reinforces the steps we need to take to keep all yard waste from being disposed in landfills and taking up valuable space,” said Short. “This is one simple way to reduce the amount of waste entering landfills. It also allwos communities to spread the word about recycling and environmental conservation,” she added.

Keep Fayette Beautiful recycled more than 5,000 trees locally last year, and a 6,000-tree goal has been set for this season.

Participating outlets in Fayette County include Kroger on N. Peachtree Parkway in Peachtree City, the recycling center at Ga. Highway 74 and Rockaway Road in Peachtree City, Home Depot at the Fayette Pavilion, Harp's Farm Market on S. Ga. Highway 92 in Fayetteville, Redwine Park in Tyrone, and the Fayette County transfer station on First Manassas Mile Road.

“Bring one for the chipper” is sponsored by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, Keep Georgia Beautiful, Georgia Power Company, Georgia-Pacific Corp., The Home Depot, White-Meadows Tree Service, Kroger, Harp's Farm, Peachtree City government and WXIA-TV.

The year 2000 marks the ninth anniversary of “Bring One for the Chipper,” which has collected 2.5 million trees and provided one million tree seedlings to participants during its previous eight years. Last year 327,578 trees were collected.

One often overlooked benefit of recycling the trees is the opportunity to receive free mulch for landscaping. The Davey Tree Expert Company provides chipping equipment at several locations around the state and will be mulching the trees as they come in Jan. 8.

In addition to landscaping, the mulch is great for children's play areas. Churches, day care centers and schools are encouraged to use the mulch from the chipper program for their playgrounds. Interested parties should phone Chris Helm at Davey Tree, 770-451-7911, for information about the availability of mulch.

This will be the fourth year that Georgia Power fish biologist Scott Hendricks has used trees to create fish habitats in Lake Burton. Last year, Georgia Power and Department of Human Resources employees placed about 600 trees in the lake.

Hendricks will partner with the DNR in late January and is hoping to use about 1,000 trees this year. He is also working with a youth bass fishing club to place about 250 trees in Lake Jackson. Placing the trees in the lake enhances the entire ecosystem.

“The trees provide a place for micro-organisms to grow, which attract the young or small fish,” said Hendricks. “In turn, the small fish attract the larger bass and crappie who are looking for an easy meal. Where the large fish gather is where you will find the anglers.”

For a complete listing of Christmas tree collection sites, check out the “Bring One for the Chipper” web site at www.KeepGeorgiaBeautiful.org.