Dry Christmas trees used to restore destroyed dunes on the coast

Evergreens are used to build new barriers in the dunes to protect the area

coastline from the destructive effects of strongstorms For residents of nearby Lake Jackson and densely populated Houston, located a little further inland, 25 miles of beaches do more than just delight the locals. The dunes of the Gulf of Mexico are home to hundreds of bird species and sea turtles that lay eggs there.

To protect the dunes, volunteers useuntreated pine stakes and natural fiber twine to securely attach about 3,000 donated Christmas trees to the sand. After a few months, the wind-blown sand begins to accumulate - it is held by the branches and needles of the trees until they are eventually completely covered.

Over time, as sand builds up on these trees, they decompose and actually fertilize some of the vegetation that will grow on them.

“The 2020 Atlantic hurricane season wasextremely active, said Phil Klotzbach, an atmospheric researcher at Colorado State University, in an interview with AFP. "There have been 30 named storms this season, a record for an Atlantic hurricane."

The coast around Surfside Beach has not suffered as much damage since 2008 from Hurricane Ike.

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