As Christmas approaches, people fill real and virtual shopping carts with gifts, decorations, and enough food to feed a small village. Many of these items will have a short life in people’s homes for the holiday season, but ultimately could contribute to ever-growing waste piles and pollution.
People in the United States produce an additional one million tons of waste per week during the holiday season, Waste Cost Solutions estimates. This includes the packaging of gifts, decorations, and food. Although some materials can be recycled and disposed of properly, it is more likely they will end up in a landfill.
“Consider utilizing a 2-yard dumpster or a 4-yard dumpster or even junk removal services to responsibly dispose of any excess waste generated during the holiday season, but don’t forget to prioritize sustainable practices like recycling and composting to reduce our impact on the environment,” Waste Cost Solutions suggests on their website.
Jason Collins, 23, is a New Jersey native. For the past two years he and his family have taken a vacation around the holidays. He says that he typically spends around $500 to $600 on gifts. To help reduce waste, he skips the wrapping paper.
“I choose not to wrap any of my gifts and I hand them out of a tote bag depending on size,” Collins said.
This is not to say that some traditions should not be enjoyed because of the waste that may be produced; there are plenty of sustainable, eco-friendly alternatives to avoid creating unnecessary waste this holiday season.
Tuft the World is an environmentally conscious business based in West Philadelphia that sells materials and tools for tufting projects. Tufting is a popular way to make rugs, but can be used for other purposes as well.
Co-founders and couple Tiernan Alexander and Tim Eads established their business in 2018, and have always made efforts to reduce their carbon footprint as small-business owners.
“That’s always been a huge part of something that I’m personally passionate about, and wanting to really carry that over into my business, because I feel like a lot of businesses lose an opportunity to do that,” said Eads.
A few ways Tuft the World focuses on sustainability is by planting a tree with every order placed through an organization called Ecologi, and by making many of their packages carbon neutral through Shopify Planet. Shopify Planet is a third party service that businesses can use that allows them to choose and pay for carbon neutral shipping. Through Ecologi, the company has helped plant over 36,000 trees.
One of the biggest practices they employ is using recycled packaging material from cardboard boxes they receive when buying bulk supplies. This helps lower the amount of waste they produce with each order.
“So the cardboard is from boxes that we get stuff in that we resell, but we have all of these cardboard boxes, and we shred that and put it in the boxes,” said Eads.
Also, in place of wasteful plastic like bubble wrap, Eads and Alexander fold up cardboard boxes and put them through a machine that perforates it into straight lines, making it bendable and light. In Philadelphia, perforated or shredded cardboard can be placed in curbside recycling.
In 2022, this practice of reusing the cardboard they were already receiving in bulk for their own orders saved two tons of packing material waste for the company.
Although Tuft the World is incorporating practices into its business to help reduce waste and pollution, the change lies with consumers. This can be especially difficult around the holidays when customers need gifts in time for events, which can put pressure on companies to ship items as quickly as possible.
“I think you just have to shop at places that have that in mind. And I mean, obviously shipping things fast, like by air, is a huge burden for carbon so shipping things slower, which means for the consumer, it’s ordering it not last minute,” said Eads.
Eads explained that he believes this could be a side effect of rampant consumerism and the convenience of shopping on Amazon.
“If we want to change the outcome of our existence here, we’re the ones who need to put pressure on corporations who actually have the control to choose to make those decisions. And that’s because most corporations are not making that decision. They’re going with the choice that gives them the most profit,” said Eads.
Another aspect of the holiday season that should be considered when thinking about sustainability is a crucial part of Christmas; the tree itself.
The debate of getting a fake or real Christmas tree is not a new one. While a fake Christmas tree can last for years, purchasing a real tree is ultimately the better option for the environment.
For example, since Christmas trees are farmed for a purpose, they are a renewable resource. Additionally, the Nature Conservancy reported that farmers plant 1-3 seedlings for every tree purchased. According to the National Christmas Tree Association, there are around 15,000 farms growing Christmas trees in the United States, and it can take as many as 15 years for a tree to grow to the typical height of six to seven feet. The average growing time is seven years.
Comparing live Christmas trees to artificial ones, artificial trees negatively affect the environment due to the materials they are made out of and the effects shipping has on the environment.
Ray Lynch, 25, is a medical cannabis professional who spends the holidays exchanging gifts and listening to gospel music. Him and his family always get artificial trees.
“This artificial tree has been in circulation for nearly half a decade,” Lynch said.
Live Christmas trees, however, bring another benefit to the environment because they can be composted, resulting in a positive use for the end of their life.
Circle Compost was established in 2016 by husband and wife Dave and Michele Bloovman and is based in Philadelphia. Their goal is to generate less waste in Philadelphia and create organic compost for farmers. By composting food scraps and leaves, they prevent these organic materials from winding up in a landfill. As part of their business, they also recycle and compost Christmas trees.
Circle Compost will pick up Christmas trees curbside, for a $20 fee, and bring them to one of their partner locations with a nonprofit farm, which then grinds the tree into wood chips. Circle Compost collects around 600 to 700 trees annually after the holiday season.
“The wood chips are used as mulch and in our composting process – added to food scraps and mixed into static piles to make compost,” said Dave Bloovman.
“Trees will not break down in landfills just like food scraps will not, so they would take up space there and not break down,” he added. “What we do recycles them into useful, organic material.”
Bloovman explained that when food scraps, or any organic materials, are sent to landfills, they do not break down properly because there is a lack of oxygen and a lack of water. Organic materials that do not break down properly also release methane gas into the atmosphere. Methane can be up to 80 times more harmful than carbon dioxide. Bloovman’s company offers an alternative.
“Instead, we turn those materials into compost that absorbs CO2 out of the air and gets used by Philly farmers and gardeners,” he said. “Composting sites make compost that gets used, and we compost in the same space again whereas landfills fill up and new landfill land is needed.”
According to Circle Compost, Philadelphia residents can generate 30% to 40% less waste by composting. While residents can use Circle Compost to recycle their Christmas trees, they can also compost all of those holiday meal leftovers.
Circle Compost is just one option for those interested in properly disposing of their Christmas trees. Pick Your Own Christmas Tree breaks down exactly where and how to dispose of live trees in New Jersey when the holiday season is over.
“These trees are a central part of the people’s holiday and it’s so sad to see them among trash bags on the curb,” Bloovman said. “Considering the amount of money people spend to buy their Christmas trees and holiday gifts, spending an additional $20 to properly recycle a tree feels like a small additional cost to do something great.”
