The pressure is on for everyone to be environmentally friendly in their daily life and to do their utmost to reduce the global carbon footprint.
Christmas might be a time for everyone to enjoy themselves, but the festive period provides no exception to this expectation. Though it’s undeniably a time for indulgence, there are certain measures that you can take to make your Christmas as sustainable as possible.
Here are a few simple tips to help you achieve a green Christmas:
The Tree
Your choice of tree can have a big impact on how sustainable your Christmas is. The best thing you can do is to opt for an artificial tree, which can be used year after year, eliminating the need for trees to be felled and used as decoration. Hayes Garden World have a wide selection of artificial Christmas trees in a range of sizes and styles; they also offer home delivery on their orders, which avoids the hassle of transporting a tree yourself.
If you do opt for a real tree, you can still reduce the impact you have on the environment in terms of how you dispose of it. If you don’t have your own composting facilities, find somewhere that offers tree recycling – local councils and authorities will usually offer this service in January. In the United States, recycled Christmas trees are used for everything from building wildlife habitats to being beneficial to the construction industry, as reported by NBC in this interesting news piece.
Gifts
There are lots of ways that you can be more eco-friendly when you purchase your Christmas gifts. Opting for locally made gifts eliminates the damage to the environment associated with transportation, as well as supporting local business. Local gifts are also much more unique and are sure to impress recipients more than the usual DVD box sets and bubble bath gift sets.
It’s also an idea to make gifts yourself. This can be anything from a knitted scarf to some festive treats you baked yourself; the BBC have some fantastic recipe ideas, including gingerbread houses that are sure to delight during the festive period!
It’s also a good idea to source wrapping paper that is fully recyclable; usually, paper with metallic detailing cannot be recycled, so opt for classic, simple designs that can be popped in the recycling bin at the end of the festivities.
Food
We’re all guilty of going a little bit overboard when it comes to food at Christmas. A report by the Daily Mail suggests that the average household will spend £135 on Christmas food – although around a fifth will end up in the bin.
There are a few things that you can do prevent this amount of waste – and save you some money in the process. One of the most effective methods of stopping yourself from buying too much, is to do your festive food shop online. When you’re stressed out in the supermarket, surrounded by thousands of shoppers, it’s easy to panic buy things you don’t need. Stay calm and collected in your own home by taking care of this online and sticking to your list.
For any food that’s left over, why not start a New Year’s resolution to put food waste to good use and invest in a compost bin? You can use leftover vegetables, fruit, teabags and coffee, and eggshells to make great compost for your garden and reduce your impact on the environment.
