If going green is one of your New Year’s resolutions, here’s a place to start: Recycle that Christmas tree.

Garbage customers with yard debris pickup can take advantage of free curbside disposal in most places if your service includes yard debris recycling. Others can drop the tree at a landfill or a disposal station. The trees will be ground up and used for compost.

Rules vary depending on where you live, but generally:

 • No flocked trees, which must be disposed of as garbage.

 • Remove all ornaments, tinsel, nails, staples and stands.

 • Cut larger trees into smaller pieces. Many haulers ask that you cut up trees and place them in your yard debris container.

 • Haulers may limit the number and size of trees.

RESIDENTIAL PICKUP

Auburn: Waste Management: Monday through Friday. Allied Waste Services: Jan. 12-16. Place trees on curbside by 6 a.m. on your collection day.

Federal Way: Monday through Friday, by 6 a.m. Place trees curbside on regular collection day.

Pierce County: LeMay Enterprises and American/D.M./Murrey’s Disp-osal.

(Anderson Island, Parkland, DuPont, Gig Harbor, Bonney Lake, Key Peninsula, Buckley, Orting, Carbonado, South Prairie, Edgewood, Sumner, Fife, Wilkeson, Roy, Eatonville, Spanaway, Graham, Steilacoom, Lakewood): Subscribers to yard waste collection can cut their tree into pieces and leave in their yard waste container. Repeat if necessary. Do not leave the tree on the curb.

Puyallup (98371 ZIP code only): Leave trees at curbside on designated collection day.

Puyallup (98372, 98373, 98374, 98375 ZIP codes): Subscribers to yard waste collection can cut their tree into pieces and leave in their yard waste container. Repeat if necessary. Do not leave the tree on the curb.

Tacoma: Jan. 12-23 on your yard debris recycling day. Cut tree if possible and place it in the brown yard waste container.

DROP-OFF DISPOSAL

The Tacoma Landfill, 3510 S. Mullen St., will accept trees from Tacoma residents through Jan. 25 between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m.

During January, Pierce County residents can dispose of undecorated, unflocked trees free at any of these transfer stations during regular hours:

 • Anderson Island, 9607 Steffensen Road.

 • Bonney Lake/South Prairie, 11710 South Prairie Road.

 • Gig Harbor, 14515 54th Ave. N.W.

 • Key Peninsula, 5900 Key Peninsula N.

 • Puyallup-South Hill, 17925 Meridian St. E.

Boy Scout Troop 71 will accept trees from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. today at the Steilacoom Public Work Yard, 1030 Roe St. Minimum donation of $3 requested. Scouts will pick up and recycle cleaned trees (all decorations removed) from Steilacoom residents for an extra $3 charge ($6 total). Call 253-584-6418.

Compiled by John Henrikson, The News Tribune