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Eco Friendly Christmas Ideas

Thinking about Christmas, we think of a stack of gifts piled under the tree. Nobody really thinks about the waste generated. Most of it is in the form of gift wrap and product packaging.
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, we generate 25 percent more waste between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day. That translates into roughly one million extra tons per week. Over the course of the holidays, that amounts to over six million tons of holiday waste that’s destined for landfills! The onset of winter coupled with the addition of holiday lights and inflatable lawn ornaments means that the amount of energy used also tends to increase. Increased energy usage is a byproduct of extra travel as folks visit friends and relatives both local and distant.
Bad as that is, there are a few simple things we can do to reduce the problems of Christmas waste.

Creatively Green Gift Ideas

Gift wrap and product packaging adds up to 4 million tons over the holiday season. Most families don’t recycle any of this used paper and plastic once Christmas morning is done and over. Even worse, a lot of the wrapping paper and packaging isn’t recyclable at all.
Here are some ideas for giving gifts that won’t clog up a landfill:

• Give a gift that requires no packaging at all such as an experience or a trip somewhere, tickets to a concert, museum, movie or national park.
• Consider sending eCards online instead of printed greeting cards. Even better, call directly on Skype or Facetime.
• You can also shoot a personalized video greeting and post it on a social network like Facebook.
• For greeting cards that you have received, you can use these to create gift tags or tree ornaments in order to help keep them out of the dump.
• If you have a fireplace, wood burning stove or go camping, you can put them in your paper shredder and use them as kindling when starting a fire.
• Instead of gift wrap, you might consider getting personalized totes that you can give to family and friends. They can either return them for subsequent use or keep them as part of the gift. You can purchase these at a variety of sites or you can make them yourself with a sewing machine and embroider the names by hand.
• Giving money or gift cards as a present is sometimes seen as a cop-out, but a lot of people prefer to pick their own gifts rather than having to regift an unwanted item. Electronic gift cards don’t even need to use the plastic needed for a physical card. The bar code or QR code will appear on your phone and can be scanned by the cashier at a store or restaurant with no waste whatsoever.
• Giving to charities in the person’s name is sometimes considered a cruel joke, but some people live in really small apartments and don’t care that much about physical things. Some people are just as happy to see the kindness paid forward in their name rather than having another doodad on their shelf collecting dust.

Consider an Artificial Tree

A family tradition for many families includes picking out, chopping down and decorating a new tree every Christmas. But, this also means throwing away another tree each year. Consider buying an artificial tree instead. This will save a tree from being killed and will keep it from accumulating in a landfill. Some communities have tree pickup that will shred the trees into mulch, but not all of them do. Some of these discarded trees go entirely to waste. An artificial tree can be used for years and years. This means you can cross “tree shopping” off of your holiday to-do list and save some gas if you have to go a long way to the nearest tree farm.

Avoid Disposable Dishes

Nothing spoils the holiday spirit like having to take care of dirty dishes. Most people dodge the work by buying disposable plates, cups and flatware. Using traditional dishes and cutlery eliminates most of that garbage and gives you a chance to show off your holiday finery.
If washable dishes aren’t an option, make sure to use disposable dishes that are recyclable. Designate a wash basin where the plastic plates can be rinsed off before making their way to the recycling bin so your guests won’t put them in the trash by mistake.

Use Less Power for Lighting

Christmas lighting options are more energy-efficient since the introduction of LED bulbs. The savings in electricity for lighting a Christmas tree 12 hours a day for 40 days is phenomenal. A string of incandescent lights would add $25.13 to your electric bill while the LED string only costs 56¢ for the holiday season. LED lights are available in a variety of colors and styles to suit everybody’s design aesthetic. You can increase the savings by putting your LED lights on a timer so you don’t forget to turn them off when you go to bed or out for holiday visits.
It is just as easy to keep things “green” around Christmas as it is any other time of the year. Do what you can to cut down the amount of disposable materials you use. Purchase reusable items like holiday dish sets, utensils and drinkware rather than buying throwaway stuff. Recycle whatever you can instead of throwing it away.
It’ll take some effort, but making these habits a regular part of your Christmas plans allows you to help the planet while you celebrate the birth of the one who came to save mankind. That’s festive stewardship at its best.