Old Christmas trees being used to fight erosion from hurricane season

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    VIRGINIA BEACH, VA (WTKR) — Oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree — it’s time for you to go.

But instead of kicking your prickly pine to the curb, you can give it new life.

For the second year in a row, Chicho’s Pizza in Virginia Beach is taking your old tree and bringing it to the beach.

From now until January 16, you can drop off your tree in the parking lot beside the restaurant on Pacific Avenue. Volunteers will then fill their trucks and trailers and caravan to the Outer Banks.

There will be two stops along the journey: The Ocean Boulevard Bistro and Martini Bar in Kitty Hawk and the Islander Motel in Nags Head.

Ultimately, the donated trees will be picked up from these locations and placed along the beaches, helping to reverse any erosion from hurricane season.

If you do decide to recycle your tree, make sure there aren’t any lights, ornaments, tinsels or other decorations still attached.

The owner of Chicho’s along the Oceanfront, Matt Potter, said they are on track to nearly triple the number of trees they collected last year. He said they’re shooting for about 1,500 trees but can’t take more than 2,000.

Those who participate will also get a $7.99 voucher for a large cheese pizza.

“There’s no reason you can’t bring your tree down here, get one of your favorite pizzas for a good price and help out the environment,” Potter said.

“Every little bit helps and the more people that we get to help out, the more impact we can have,” said Victor Enriquez. Enriquez is with Skimmunity House, Chicho’s official partner for the collection.

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