According to the National Christmas Tree Association , 25 to 30 million real Christmas trees are sold in the U.S. each year. Although biodegradable by nature, a majority of the once-twinkling, popcorn and red ribbon-adorned trees end up in the landfill alongside the holiday wrapping paper.
High Desert residents who wait until the new year to get rid of their Christmas trees should consider donating them to Phelan’s Forever Wild Exotic Animal Sanctuary for animal enrichment.
The sanctuary announced its tree donation request with an excitable video of a spotted hyena playing with and scratching its back on one of the already donated trees on social media . Forever Wild has been accepting old trees since their 2009 opening, manager Kiah Almquist told the Daily Press, and the more the merrier…