Frantic searches for the 'right' present, stocking up food for the day, precariously delivering that new Christmas tree on the back seat of the car... Things we've all experienced. But the heavy environmental damage we cause shouldn't be forgotten either.
Six million Christmas trees dumped into landfill sites, over one billion cards thrown away or burnt and 52 square miles of thrown away wrapping paper will be ripped off on boxing day – and the numbers are steadily rising. The environmental damage we cause can be limited – the damage caused will be inevitable, but as a global community, we must cut the damage we do as much as possible.
The Christmas shopping craze is driven by a system where it needs constant growth. What it doesn’t take into account is that we are using up our planet to extinction. If the world population on the planet consumed raw materials as fast as we do in the UK, we would need five Earths to be able to support us. These yearly self destructive sprees that we go on are hugely unsustainable.
Britons spend billions each year on Christmas gifts and items we usually discard and throw away, but living a sustainable Christmas also means saving money on the dreaded January bill – all the more reason to start thinking GREEN this Christmas!
The focus of this year’s Christmas themed articles from the committee’s own writers is to help the readers to try and cut down on their celebratory wastage as much as possible and do our bit to have an eco-friendly holiday.
Give it a try!
let's have a green
christmas