How discarded Christmas trees are being used to build dunes on a UK beach

More than 2,000 Christmas trees were planted at St Annes beach in February 2026. (Photo: .visitstannes.info) Discarded Christmas trees are being used to help protect homes and businesses along the Fylde Coast in Lancashire, UK. Since the project began in 2013, old Christmas trees have been placed on St Annes beach to trap wind-blown sand and help build wider sand dunes.According to Fydle Council, the annual work is part of the Fylde Sand Dunes Project, which aims to restore and conserve the coastal dunes. Fylde Council, Lancashire Wildlife Trust and Blackpool Council work together on the project, which is funded by the Environment Agency.The idea is simple. Trees are placed in front of the existing dunes, where their branches slow down the wind and trap sand. As more sand collects around the trees, the mound grows and can eventually become part of a new dune.The project has already produced a visible change. Last year, more than 2,000 Christmas trees were collected from residents and used in the planting work. According to the council, this helped create a 90-metre increase in the width of the Fylde Sand Dune system.Christmas trees build dunesSand dunes naturally develop when wind-...