As a keen environmentalist, I was disturbed by the vast amount of waste that we create as a country each year. At Christmas alone, more than a billion Christmas cards are likely to be dumped or burnt - which, laid end to end, would stretch around the world five times. This is completely unacceptable.
Therefore, please see below information on how you can recycling your waste this Christmas:
Christmas Trees
6 million Christmas trees are discarded every year - that's the equivalent to 250 tonnes of Christmas trees!
- If you have purchased a Christmas tree with roots, it is possible to plant it. The tree can even be kept in a pot if you haven’t got space to plant it in the ground in your garden. If your tree is in the pot that came from the supplier, it is recommend that you plant it in to a larger pot with fresh compost and then pop it in your garden to enjoy all year round. Next Christmas you’ll be able to bring it back into your house to decorate again!
- If you bought a felled tree this year, these can be chipped and used as compost. You can also take your tree to your local tip in January, where there will be a garden waste section.
- Artificial trees are made from a combination of materials and therefore cannot be recycled. However, unwanted trees in good condition may be accepted by charity shops for re-sale and re-use.
Christmas Cards & Wrapping Paper
Each year, more than 1 billion cards end up in the bin, when they could be recycled. On top of that, 227,000 miles of wrapping paper is also thrown away - that's enough to wrap around the equator 9 times!
Also, don't forget about many charities that sell Christmas cards every year to help those in need, Cards for Charity has a large selection of choice to support a wide range of fantastic charities: https://www.cardsforcharity.co.uk/
- Most Christmas cards are paper based and can therefore be recycled, along with their envelopes, in your home recycling collection or at local recycling points such as household waste recycling centres, although any extras such as ribbons, glitter or bows cannot be recycled and need to be removed by tearing off that part of the card.
- You could join me in sending an -E-Christmas Card' to save on the waste all together. No envelopes and no card, equals no waste!
- Another nice idea is to keep your cards and use them as gift tags for the following year.
- Wrapping paper can also be recycled in your paper recycling, however be aware that the materials that go into making some wrapping paper result in it not always being accepted for recycling.
Christmas Decorations
- Natural materials on wreaths, such as ivy, fir cones, mistletoe and holly, can be composted as long as they are not covered with excessive glitter. Simply remove the greenery from the base and add to your garden/green waste collection, or drop at your local household waste recycling centre.
- Unwanted decorations in good condition can be donated to charity shops for re-sale and re-use.
More information on ways to recycle can be found at https://www.recyclenow.com/