St. Paul's giant tree: A bright and shining energy waste?

What costs much less in New York than it does in St. Paul? Lighting the city Christmas tree, because Rockefeller Center is using LED bulbs and St. Paul isn't.

By Karen Youso, Star Tribune

Last update: November 23, 2007 - 9:33 AM

The giant spruce tree gracing St. Paul's Rice Park may be, as promoters predict, "as tall and bright as the iconic Rockefeller Center tree in New York City." But it won't be as green.

When the switch is flipped on Saturday, St. Paul's tree festooned with 60,000 incandescent minilights will twinkle 24 hours a day for five-and-a-half weeks. Such seasonal splendor comes at a cost of about $1,300 and 18.7 tons of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide, according to estimates by Phil Smith, energy specialist at the Minnesota Department of Commerce's state energy office.

The cost will be lower for New York's tree lit with 30,000 energy-efficient light-emitting diodes (LEDs), and not just because it shines only 18 hours a day. LED bulbs suck about one-tenth the juice as do incandescent minilights. If the Rockefeller Center tree were erected here, Minnesota state energy officials estimate that lighting it for the season would cost a mere $136.80 and 1.8 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2). Further reducing environmental damage, the lights on New York's tree will be powered, in part, by solar energy, courtesy of the solar panels newly installed on a nearby roof.

The decision on how to light St. Paul's tree wasn't the city's alone, officials said. While city-employed crews cut, move and decorate the tree, the city doesn't pay for their time or the lights. Capital City Partnership, a nonprofit St. Paul booster club of local corporations, funds the project through donations, said Brad Meyer, spokesman for the St. Paul Parks and Recreation Department.

"The city is committed to reducing its overall CO2 emissions, [but] we decided not to be a Scrooge this holiday season," said Anne Hunt, sustainability coordinator working in the St. Paul mayor's office. "The tree in Rice Park is such a wonderful winter destination."

The state energy office's Smith said that "it's not about being a Scrooge, it's about making the right decisions."

New York will likely get further use from the Rockefeller tree's lights. LEDs in outdoor displays can be removed at season's end and reused for up to 10 years. The tree will be milled and treated and made into lumber to be used by Habitat for Humanity.

As in years past, St. Paul forester Scott Kruse expects the St. Paul tree to be shredded and burned as waste to produce heat and air conditioning. The lights are cut down and thrown away, according to Meyer. They are a one-time-use item.

Karen Youso • 612-673-4407

Karen Youso • kyouso@startribune.com

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