More than 800 trees chipped in RR recycling program

RIO RANCHO — The city of Rio Rancho converted more than 800 recycled Christmas trees into mulch thanks to this year's haul of residential spruces.

The city chipped 857 trees, amounting to roughly 12,855 pounds of mulch, as part of the tree recycling program, a longtime partnership between electricity provider PNM, Rio Rancho and the city of Albuquerque.

Nick Dahl, coordinator for Keep Rio Rancho Beautiful, touted in a news release the fact that "holiday trees are biodegradable, making them easily recyclable." 

"This event offers a wonderful opportunity for the community to give back while benefiting from their efforts," Dahl stated. "Recycling your tree is a meaningful way to pay it forward, and your contribution is deeply appreciated."

PNM spokesman Eric Chavez said that his agency is thankful to Rio Rancho residents who recycled their trees.

"It’s a group effort to do a project like this, and it wouldn’t be possible without the community members," Chavez said. "PNM would also like to give a huge shout out to the city, and we look forward to doing this next holiday season."

Between the two cities, 5,628 trees were recycled and more than 84,000 pounds of mulch were produced, the release said.

Wes Gray, vice president of operations and engineering for PNM, said his agency is "proud to support the sustainability efforts of the city of Albuquerque and the city of Rio Rancho."

 “The same equipment we use year‑round to help reduce outages and support wildfire mitigation was put to good use this holiday season, helping turn thousands of Christmas trees into mulch for our communities," Gray stated.

Willing residents were able to drop their trees off at the Rio Rancho Sports Complex from Dec. 26 to Jan. 12.