Fake Christmas trees have taken the world by storm. The plastic foliage enters homes every holiday season, never dropping dry needles and always staying perfectly symmetrical. As they have continued to gain popularity, they’re encroaching on the Truckee holidays. 

Plastic trees in a town that sits in the heart of the mountains surrounded by pine is a ridiculous idea. In an area where tree thinning is necessary, buying a piece of plastic and shipping it across the world from China is unnecessary and irresponsible too.

Locals have helped thin forests every holiday season by cutting down trees that would otherwise clutter the forest and increase risk during fire season. This method requires a little work, sure. You have to find an approved area to thin forests and you have to physically cut it down using a chainsaw while often standing knee-deep in snow. 

Yet, it doesn’t have to be a feat of manual labor. States like North Carolina and Oregon ship out real trees to homes across the country, allowing people who live in areas non-native to pine trees to have access to the real Christmas spirit. Shipping real trees around the country, although contributing to carbon emissions, is still better than shipping absurd amounts of plastic and metal across the globe. 

Additionally, tree lots sweep through our town when the holidays loom. Ace Hardware and Savemart both have trees for sale in their lots, and proceeds can help contribute to local Boy Scouts or other organizations.

Sir Optimist by Village Pizzeria is a charity organization that also donates $30,000 to Truckee’s children every year. Sir Optimist also offers volunteer hours for THS students to full-fill volunteer hours before graduation. 

All three of these local Christmas tree organizations benefit the community. A plastic Christmas tree benefits companies who profit off of plastic waste.

When shipping a fake, plastic tree to Truckee, there is no excuse. There are multiple ways to gain a real tree in Truckee and denying those methods to instead buy a wad of plastic from a factory outside of the country in Asia is irresponsible. 

Finally, the most unacceptable trees of all are the plastic ones in solid and unnatural colors. Bright red trees or perfectly symmetrical all-white ones are ridiculous. They are non-traditional and interrupt the Christmas spirit, only useful to Instagram influencers who color scheme their entire lives. 

Having a natural, green tree is undeniably the best way to go, especially in the Town of Truckee. They are environmentally friendly, beautiful, and traditional whereas fake trees are a waste of plastic, their perfectly arranged boughs don’t allow room for individuality, and they’re not often used in Truckee. 

In this town, there are a multitude of ways to obtain a real tree. Buying a fake one off of the internet is lazy and unnecessary.