In 2024, more than 160 of them got a second act. 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. 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!
We are incredibly thankful to our partners at Yeti and the Army Corps of Engineers, as well as the dozens of other partner organisations and volunteers who collaborate with our biologists to deliver over 50 habitat restoration or enhancement projects each year in Texas rivers and lakes,” Tim Birdsong, TPWD Inland Fisheries Division Director, said in a release.
Granger is known for crappie and this reef should benefit both the anglers and the fish at this lake, which otherwise has limited natural fish habitat,” Patrick Ireland said. “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. “The trees were installed as part of a large reef that will serve as habitat for fish in Granger Lake in the coming years and as an area for anglers to target.