Andy at Business Waste.trade has shared an insightful infographic with us. He says:
“This year it’s expected that the average family will spend, on average, £800 on presents, food, decorations and travel. After all, it is the time of the year where we visit distant loved ones, reconnect with lost friends, and gorge ourselves silly on party food and alcohol.
“As well as the great financial strains that the festive season puts on us, it also has other, largely unseen consequences that affect the environment around us.
“According to research conducted by Business Waste.trade, the two weeks that make up our favourite time of the year put great strain on resources, and amounts to millions of tonnes of waste and pollution.
“For example, did you know that we as a country throw away 230,000 tonnes of food during the Christmas period, which is the equivalent of 74 million mince pies? Or that it takes 3.5kg of carbon dioxide to produce just 1kg of wrapping paper? ”
Click on the graphic below to find out more:
After digesting some of those figures, I reckon that if I can make even a small reduction on my impact, it’ll be effort well spent. Here’s some ideas for you to reduce your Christmas Carbon Footprint and have a bit of fun at the same time…
Making, decorating and Christmas day crafts:
Why not try your hand at making some carbon-neutral Christmas lights? Your neighbours will be impressed, and you could work off all those mince pies at the same time on a pedal powered version.
Here’s a fun eco-friendly Christmas day craft activity that will ensure your empty gift boxes get plenty of re-use and enjoyment before you’re ready to recycle them. What other animals or objects could you make?
Eat, drink, be merry and recycle:
For any meat-eaters out there, don’t forget to buy a local Turkey. Make sure you get a big one, so you can invite lots of friends over… cooking one big meal takes up a lot less energy than cooking many. And it’s far more social too!
And finally, when the festivities come to an end, Recycle now has a helpful recycling locator that can make sure anything you haven’t eaten or reused ends up in the right recycling bin.
Wishing you the best for the holiday season from EcoStreet!
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