Ways To Go Green During The Holidays

As you’re preparing for a season of celebration, merriment and gift giving, also prepare to “go green” by discovering ways to conserve natural resources and reduce waste. Extend your environmentally conscious, green lifestyle to your holiday festivities to not only protect the earth, but also save money on your holiday gifts and winter utility bills.

Use Eco-Friendly Tableware

If you’re hosting a holiday party for friends and family members, reduce the event’s environmental impact. The Stern Campus Greening Initiative recommends using biodegradable tableware to serve your guests. The website reports that you can purchase plates created with bamboo and cornstarch at stores such as Whole Foods. You can also eliminate wasteful paper goods altogether by renting plates, silverware, glasses and cloth napkins from a party supply store.

Reuse Wrapping

Wrap holiday gifts in recycled materials and save used wrapping paper to adorn future gifts. The 5R Recycling Program of the Stanford Recycling Center and Peninsula Sanitary Service states that if each family in the United States used recycled paper to wrap three gifts, the process would conserve enough paper to blanket an area equivalent to 45,000 football fields. Cover gifts with used wrapping paper or materials, such as newspaper comics, fabric and magazine advertisements, or simply place the gift in a reusable box topped with a colorful bow.

Save on Heating

With the winter holidays comes the winter chill, but cut energy use and heating costs by taking a tip from the Consumer Energy Center of the California Energy Commission--set your thermostat to 68 degrees F or less. The center also recommends setting the unit to 55 degrees F or less at night. If you’re hosting overnight guests, the extra body heat in your home may keep friends and family members warm, but remind guests about your green holiday habits and ask them to bring extra clothing, jackets or blankets just in case.

Recycle the Tree

Rather than contributing to landfill overflows by putting your holiday tree in a trash can, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recommends recycling the tree in a way that positively impacts the environment. Ask if your city trash collection service will have a special pick-up day for Christmas tree recycling. If your city doesn’t have a recycling program that uses dead trees for composting local gardens and parks, determine if a neighboring city has a location where you can drop off your tree to be a part of its mulching program.

Choose Energy-Efficient Lighting

Find ways to ensure the holiday lights that adorn your home and Christmas tree don’t waste energy. The Bonneville Power Administration recommends using energy efficient light emitting diode, or LED, house lights and running them no more than six hours each night. Ensure you limit light usage by connecting the strings to an automatic timer that allows you to set the on and off schedule.