‘Chipping of the Green’ canceled after chips disappear

JACKSON, Tenn. — The city of Jackson has canceled its annual Chipping of the Green event scheduled for Saturday.

A parking lot in front of the Jackson Fairgrounds on South Highland Avenue sits empty after wood chips meant for the community went missing. “There was a large pile,” Keep Jackson Beautiful Director Jodi Jacobs said. “We had about 550 trees.”

The city turns recycled Christmas trees into wood chips and gives them away, but Jacobs said that will not happen this year.

“I feel sorry, but it just was a circumstance that we had never dealt with,” Jacobs said.

Jacobs said the chips were supposed to be given out on Saturday, but weather forced them to postpone the event.

In an effort to serve more people in the community, Jacobs said they typically limit each person to six bags of wood chips.

Nathan Smith works at Terry’s Rental Equipment across the street and said he saw two older-model trucks in the area earlier this week. “One of the truck beds was completely full of the wood chips, and it was just two men out there shoveling,” he said.

The city said Chipping of the Green started more than 20 years ago. Jacobs called the situation frustrating. “I guess lesson learned,” she said. “I’ll have to, if it ever happens again, we’ll do it some other way.”

Jacobs said they still plan to have the event again next year.