New York City is known for its trash, both for the amount deposited on the sidewalks day after day and for the “quality” of the trash, which can include objects, appliances, furniture, and books, all in perfect working condition. In the weeks following Christmas, there is a noticeable change in the landscape of New York’s sidewalks. The mountains of black bags at the city corners are now accompanied by thousands of Christmas trees.
During the 1980s, the artificial Christmas tree industry 
threatened the old American tradition of cutting down one’s own Christmas tree. Christmas tree farms continue to exist and currently compete with the artificial tree industry for the title of “most eco-friendly.” The farms argue that natural trees produce oxygen while they grow, are produced in the USA (artificial ones are manufactured in China), and after use can be turned into compost or used to protect eroded slopes. The problem is that these arguments do not take into account the impact on biodiversity and the amount of pesticides used to keep the fragile pines free from pests.
The United States has 200,000 acres of Christmas tree plantations. The population of New York spends over 9 million dollars a year decorating their homes in December with freshly cut pines (which usually range in age from 8 to 12 years), which will later be abandoned on the streets along with cardboard gift boxes, plastic bottles, and old computers. The New York City government has two programs to collect trees and turn them into mulch through chipping, creating an organic cover used to protect the soil in parks, squares, and community gardens during the winter. The first occurs in the second week of January when each family takes their tree to recycling locations. Trees can also be left on the sidewalk during the first two weeks of January, but, 
if they still have any decorations (lights, ornaments, plastics, etc.), they are collected as regular trash and their destination becomes the landfill.
The FOREST project is part of a series of research by the Urban Homesteading Project (UHP) collective on the connection between waste, environmental issues, and social interactions in New York City’s public space.
The neighborhood of Greenpoint, a port that hosted all kinds of industrial facilities last century, is the scene of various ecological accidents and still deals with the consequences of past neglect. The neighborhood is undergoing urban changes: imposing luxury buildings are being constructed, overshadowing the homes traditionally occupied by Polish residents, and large stores and new restaurants are setting up in the main streets of the neighborhood.
Source: piseagrama.org