Advertisement

Christmas Trees, for Fish

A U.S. town is recycling them into a habitat for crappie, whitefish and walleye.

The waters near Farm Island in Pierre, South Dakota, are about to become a whole lot merrier for the fish that live there.

The state’s Game, Fish and Parks department has begun a recycling program that will turn about 65 Christmas trees into an improved habitat for crappie, whitefish and walleye. A department employee conceived the idea after seeing dozens of trees dumped into a local landfill. He collected them inside a warehouse, had their branches stripped and placed their bases into plastic buckets that were later filled with cement. In March, the weighted trees will be dropped into the water near a causeway to create a better environment for fish—and an easy mark for recreational anglers to target their casts come summer.

Previously, the High Plains Wildlife Association undertook a similar project. Once underwater, the trees are expected to remain intact for about five years.

Advertisement

Read more in this full report from the Rapid City Journal: http://bit.ly/1gwLJn7.

Advertisement
Advertisement