Oh Christmas tree, we've found a much greener use for thee

Rain drizzles down on a gray Little Dixie Lake in Millersburg. The lake is just one of several locations where the Missouri Department of Conservation creates fish habitats from natural, recycled Christmas trees.
Rain drizzles down on a gray Little Dixie Lake in Millersburg. The lake is just one of several locations where the Missouri Department of Conservation creates fish habitats from natural, recycled Christmas trees.

The Christmas cookies have vanished, wrapping paper crumpled into wads and tossed, and hand-made ornaments have been bundled in tissue paper and returned to the attic, but something still has to be done about the tree. Why not create a fish habitat?

The Missouri Department of Conservation has collected natural Christmas trees for more than 25 years to recycle as fish habitats in local lakes. By weighing down the donated pine and cedar trees, the interlocking branches create a network where small fish gather, reproduce and feed.

Scott Voney is the MDC's fisheries management biologist for Callaway County and has managed Little Dixie Lake in Millersburg for more than 20 years.

He also works with the Fulton Parks and Recreation Department to create drop-off locations where county residents can haul their natural Christmas trees to be sunk and recycled as fish habitats.

In addition to accepting donated trees, Voney travels to stores and other drop-off sites to collect trees and recycle them this way. When it's time to dump the trees, he uses cables to connect cinderblocks to the trees and sinks them on top of the brush pile from the previous year. These piles are created in eight feet of water or less where the oxygen levels are higher and attract more fish. While pine trees are acceptable, Voney likes using a combination of cedar and oak, which last longer in the water and makes for a variety in habitat.

"These habitats are important for newborn fish," Voney said. "As soon as they hatch they're vulnerable, so it gives them a place to hide from larger fish."

When small fish take cover in the sunken brush, it attracts larger fish and other species, like amphibians, birds and fishermen.

"With small fish hanging undercover it draws larger fish for food and then people have a large pool to fish from," Voney added.

Some of the other Callaway County lakes Voney creates fish habitats for are Veterans Lake and Morningside Lake in Fulton and McCredie Farm Lake in Kingdom City.

Voney has yet to collaborate with the Parks and Recreation Department to create a drop-off site for the MDC. In the mean time, the city of Fulton has yard waste collection containers at the Westminster Avenue and Tennyson Road fire stations for tree disposal, according to the city's website. The trees can also be set out on the curb for pickup on the regularly-scheduled solid waste collection day. They will eventually be converted to mulch if the MDC doesn't collect them for fish habitats.

"It's a good idea to remove ornaments, lights, before dropping them off," Voney said.