From Christmas trees to fish habitat: Texas gives 160 trees a second life

The Christmas season is around the corner, and the must-have Christmas tree often ends up on the curb once the holidays are over, needles trailing down the driveway. They rarely get a second act. In 2024, more than 160 of them got a second act. None of them were headed for a living room, but a lake. The Christmas trees were dropped off at Yeti's flagship store in Austin. Biologists and technicians from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) Inland Fisheries Division hauled the trees to Granger Lake and sank them as a single large reef. The project also involved the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and had a specific purpose: to give the fish somewhere to be!From Austin to the lakeThe logistics were simple. Yeti collected the Christmas trees at the store. TPWD crews moved them to the water. The Army Corps was part of the partnership that made the installation possible. All this was to improve fish habitat at Granger Lake.“This project not only enhanced fish habitat at Granger Lake, but it helped grow public awareness of the need and benefits to fish and anglers from restoring and enhancing fish habitat in Texas lakes. We are incredibly thankful to our partners at Yeti and the Ar...