Dreaming of a Green Christmas
Tips for a more Earth-Friendly Holidays
The holidays are a warm time of year when we try to put forth increased effort in thinking of others. So why not give a gift that affects us all? Go Green this Christmas and help preserve our planet for generations to come.
It’s sad think that in this time of giving, we produce more waste than any other time of the year. It is estimated that Americans produce an extra 6 million tons of waste between Thanksgiving and New Year’s alone.
The big waste culprits are the paper used for Christmas cards, gift paper, and other packing materials like boxes, Styrofoam peanuts and plastic bubble wrap. Other ecological concerns include the amount of trees used for the holidays, gasoline usage to go shopping, and electricity used for decorations.
This holiday season, please take some time to think about what you can do to lessen the negative environmental impact this season may cause. Here are a few tips that can help.
Try buying gifts that require less or no additional wrapping
Go for gifts that involve life experiences such as tickets for a show, airplane or sports event. Gift certificates to a favorite restaurant, store, or a gift card from American Express®, Visa®, or MasterCard® would also be a great alternative and allows the receiver the freedom to choose the gift.
Send Christmas e-cards instead of paper Christmas cards
Each year, Americans purchase over 2.6 billion holiday cards. This is enough paper to fill a football field 10 stories high. Instead of wasting all that paper, send your loved ones an e-card. If you would still rather send a paper card, buy cards printed on recycled paper. If you receive paper Christmas cards, don’t just toss them; put the cards (and the envelopes) in the paper recycle bin.
Recycle: Buy it and Do it
Like the Christmas cards, try to buy recycled gift wrap, gift bags, boxes, and other packing material. After the presents are all opened, collect the boxes, gift bags, Styrofoam peanuts, bubble wrap, ribbons,bows and tissue paper and use them again next year. You’ll be saving the planet and money.
Switch to Low-Energy Lights
Light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are lights which use semi-conducting material rather than incandescent filaments, making them 90 percent more efficient than traditional Christmas lights, which means a lower electric bill for you. They also last about 200,000 hours and release little heat, making them less of a fire hazard than regular lights. In the event that one does burn out, the rest of the lights will keep on glowing.
Faux Fir
For many years it was believed that buying a fake tree was less eco-friendly than buying a real one. However, recent studies suggest that despite their petroleum-based materials and high energy consumption rate during their manufacture, a one-time purchase of an artificial tree can save gas otherwise used for annual trips to the local tree farm. They also don’t require messy clean-up due to falling needles, and they stay beautiful without the care whereas real trees require water and oftentimes begin to droop because of the warm temperatures inside the average home.
If you still want a real tree, try having it ground up into wood chips and use it as mulch instead of disposing it in your local landfill. You could also call your sanitation department and make sure that they will recycle the wood.
Make A List, and Check it Twice
Before you go shopping, plan out where you want to go and what you want to buy. Plan your routes so that you don’t have to double back. Also, know what you’re going to buy and from where. Try to plan the small stuff too, like batteries for toys. If you remember to write them on your list, you won’t forget them and you won’t have to waste more energy and gas going back to get them.
Speaking of batteries, consider buying rechargeable batteries. They create far less waste, and since all you do is recharge them, you --or who you give them to --won’t waste time, gas or money by having to run to the store and buy new ones.
These are just a few great ways to save money and help our earth during the holidays. As a real gift to all, you should practice and try to encourage others to practice Green techniques year round. It will benefit you and your family and the many generations that follow.
Did You Know?*
If every American family reused just 2 feet of holiday ribbon, it would create 38,000 miles of recycled ribbon. This is enough ribbon to tie a bow around the entire planet.
If everyone in the U.S. replaced their regular holiday light strings with LEDs, in one month at least two billion kilowatt-hours of electricity could be saved. This is enough energy to power 200,000 homes for a year.
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