Tips for an Eco-friendly Holiday Season
This was taken from the Ecology Center newsletter.
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Americans throw away an additional 5 million tons of trash, 25% more than usual, between Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve. That extra helping of consumer goods, packaging, food waste, and Christmas trees really takes a toll on our environment! More packaging means more trees are cut down; more consumer goods means more petroleum is used for transport.
GIFT GIVING
Many unwanted gifts end up in storage or even in the garbage, and excess packaging of consumer goods also adds to the waste stream. Make your gift count by making it thoughtful and choosing one that benefits the environment.
Follow these tips:
Keep it simple. One thoughtful gift is better than many wrapped packages of unwanted gifts. Draw names or share the cost of a gift with a sibling or friend.
Make your own gifts; knit, sew, make preserves, or make art from reused items.
Also consider these ideas:
o Give a membership or donate to an organization in the name of a friend or relative in a subject area of interest to them, such as protecting rain forests.
o Give a garden! Seeds, gloves, tools, etc. Weed, water, or help establish a
friend's garden.
o Give a gift certificate for your time - child sit, or pet sit. Offer your talents, such as photography, financial planning, or hair styling. Make dinner for someone or cook and deliver it to them.
o Give an experience such as tuition for an unusual class. For kids, consider
giving an environmental excursion, like a whale-watching or camping trip. Plant a tree in someone's name.
o Create a family recipe book. Make a book of family recipes by inserting recipe sheets into clear holders and assembling them in a binder. Collect photos and put together a photo album. Make a calendar for the coming year using personal or family photographs.
If you buy gifts, consider the impact of your gift: Is it environmentally friendly and safe? Will it be reusable? Is it recyclable and/or made from recycled materials?
o Look for gifts that are: durable; not over-packaged; energy efficient;
wind-up, or use rechargeable batteries; recycled (for example, antiques or used bikes); recyclable; and not made of tropical woods like teak, rosewood, or mahogany. Look for gifts that are un packaged or minimally packaged, without unnecessary plastic wrap or cardboard backing. Buy durable gifts with long-term warranties.
o Purchase gifts from local vendors, or that were made locally. Look for
gifts using fair trade labor practices.
o Look for gifts that are made of natural components, such as organically
grown cotton or hemp, especially when shopping for items such as clothing, bedding, and towels. When purchasing toys for young children, buy dolls and stuffed animals made of organic cotton, or handcrafted toys made from natural wood.
GIFT WRAP
Much of the additional waste headed to the landfill during the holiday season comes in the form of gift wrap and packaging. Good alternative gift wraps include:
o Old maps, sheet music or colorful ads from old magazines
o Baskets
o Reusable tins
o Scarves, and handkerchiefs
o Leftover fabric or fabric gift bags
o Lightweight wallpaper
o Pages from a child's coloring book taped together
o Newspapers (foreign newspapers are great) and Sunday comic pages
o Last year's holiday paper (press with warm iron if wrinkled).
o Pictures or advertisements from magazines and catalogs
o A plain box decorated with leftover glitter, paint, markers, etc.
o An usable cake pan or a wooden box.
When opening presents, save the wrapping paper, boxes, tins, ribbons and bows for use for next year. If you purchase gift wrap, look for wrapping paper and holiday cards with post-consumer recycled content, which avoids cutting down any new trees, and "closes the recycling loop."
MEALS AND FOOD SERVICE
The ingredients for the average U.S. meal have traveled 1,200 miles by the time they reach the plate. All of this travel requires petroleum for transport and for refrigeration. Buying locally grown food is better for the environment and usually tastes much better, too. Choosing food that is in season and that isn't flown in from a tropical climate also saves energy.
When you shop at farmers' markets you directly support small family farmers, and choosing organic food reduces the use of toxic pesticides.
Another factor to consider when serving food and entertaining during the holidays is how to avoid producing excess garbage. Some waste-saving tips include:
o Buy snacks and beverages in bulk, to reduce packaging
o Try to avoid disposables when entertaining, and instead set your table with china, silverware, glasses and cloth napkins
o Recycling cans, glass, cardboard, paper and plastic is especially important
during this time since such a huge amount of waste is generated.
CHRISTMAS TREES
Christmas trees are usually grown on tree farms that use large amounts of pesticides and petrochemical fertilizers. These toxic chemicals pollute the land and waterways and can poison wildlife. It takes 7 to 10 years to grow a Christmas tree, whose useful product life is about one month. At the end of the Christmas season, the cut tree is disposed of either in the landfill or through the yard waste program. A better choice is to use a live potted tree that can be used over the years or can be replanted. If you do pick a cut tree, be sure to set it out on the curb for your yard waste collection.
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I hope everyone has a PEACEFUL holiday season.
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Americans throw away an additional 5 million tons of trash, 25% more than usual, between Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve. That extra helping of consumer goods, packaging, food waste, and Christmas trees really takes a toll on our environment! More packaging means more trees are cut down; more consumer goods means more petroleum is used for transport.
GIFT GIVING
Many unwanted gifts end up in storage or even in the garbage, and excess packaging of consumer goods also adds to the waste stream. Make your gift count by making it thoughtful and choosing one that benefits the environment.
Follow these tips:
Keep it simple. One thoughtful gift is better than many wrapped packages of unwanted gifts. Draw names or share the cost of a gift with a sibling or friend.
Make your own gifts; knit, sew, make preserves, or make art from reused items.
Also consider these ideas:
o Give a membership or donate to an organization in the name of a friend or relative in a subject area of interest to them, such as protecting rain forests.
o Give a garden! Seeds, gloves, tools, etc. Weed, water, or help establish a
friend's garden.
o Give a gift certificate for your time - child sit, or pet sit. Offer your talents, such as photography, financial planning, or hair styling. Make dinner for someone or cook and deliver it to them.
o Give an experience such as tuition for an unusual class. For kids, consider
giving an environmental excursion, like a whale-watching or camping trip. Plant a tree in someone's name.
o Create a family recipe book. Make a book of family recipes by inserting recipe sheets into clear holders and assembling them in a binder. Collect photos and put together a photo album. Make a calendar for the coming year using personal or family photographs.
If you buy gifts, consider the impact of your gift: Is it environmentally friendly and safe? Will it be reusable? Is it recyclable and/or made from recycled materials?
o Look for gifts that are: durable; not over-packaged; energy efficient;
wind-up, or use rechargeable batteries; recycled (for example, antiques or used bikes); recyclable; and not made of tropical woods like teak, rosewood, or mahogany. Look for gifts that are un packaged or minimally packaged, without unnecessary plastic wrap or cardboard backing. Buy durable gifts with long-term warranties.
o Purchase gifts from local vendors, or that were made locally. Look for
gifts using fair trade labor practices.
o Look for gifts that are made of natural components, such as organically
grown cotton or hemp, especially when shopping for items such as clothing, bedding, and towels. When purchasing toys for young children, buy dolls and stuffed animals made of organic cotton, or handcrafted toys made from natural wood.
GIFT WRAP
Much of the additional waste headed to the landfill during the holiday season comes in the form of gift wrap and packaging. Good alternative gift wraps include:
o Old maps, sheet music or colorful ads from old magazines
o Baskets
o Reusable tins
o Scarves, and handkerchiefs
o Leftover fabric or fabric gift bags
o Lightweight wallpaper
o Pages from a child's coloring book taped together
o Newspapers (foreign newspapers are great) and Sunday comic pages
o Last year's holiday paper (press with warm iron if wrinkled).
o Pictures or advertisements from magazines and catalogs
o A plain box decorated with leftover glitter, paint, markers, etc.
o An usable cake pan or a wooden box.
When opening presents, save the wrapping paper, boxes, tins, ribbons and bows for use for next year. If you purchase gift wrap, look for wrapping paper and holiday cards with post-consumer recycled content, which avoids cutting down any new trees, and "closes the recycling loop."
MEALS AND FOOD SERVICE
The ingredients for the average U.S. meal have traveled 1,200 miles by the time they reach the plate. All of this travel requires petroleum for transport and for refrigeration. Buying locally grown food is better for the environment and usually tastes much better, too. Choosing food that is in season and that isn't flown in from a tropical climate also saves energy.
When you shop at farmers' markets you directly support small family farmers, and choosing organic food reduces the use of toxic pesticides.
Another factor to consider when serving food and entertaining during the holidays is how to avoid producing excess garbage. Some waste-saving tips include:
o Buy snacks and beverages in bulk, to reduce packaging
o Try to avoid disposables when entertaining, and instead set your table with china, silverware, glasses and cloth napkins
o Recycling cans, glass, cardboard, paper and plastic is especially important
during this time since such a huge amount of waste is generated.
CHRISTMAS TREES
Christmas trees are usually grown on tree farms that use large amounts of pesticides and petrochemical fertilizers. These toxic chemicals pollute the land and waterways and can poison wildlife. It takes 7 to 10 years to grow a Christmas tree, whose useful product life is about one month. At the end of the Christmas season, the cut tree is disposed of either in the landfill or through the yard waste program. A better choice is to use a live potted tree that can be used over the years or can be replanted. If you do pick a cut tree, be sure to set it out on the curb for your yard waste collection.
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I hope everyone has a PEACEFUL holiday season.