Christmas Season Waste – York PA

As the New Year approaches, we have a feeling of relief that the difficult year has ended. Now that Thanksgiving is done, we can spend some time putting up decorations at home to get the festive season spirit going. Christmas waste removal

It is the time for family and friends to visit and usher out the old and bring in the new. In doing so, we are likely to go out and look for gifts and stock up with extra food and drinks over this period. 

This of course is the peak period for excess waste as all households traditionally generate a whole lot of extra trash during this time. We will discuss ways to help you manage and reduce this excess waste to help the impact on the environment.

How Much Waste is Created Over the Holiday Season?

The festive season really contributes to the increase in waste through a huge amount of packaging, wrapping, plastic, glass, and left-over food. Unfortunately, a lot of it ends up in landfills, contributing to an increase in greenhouse gas emissions that are dangerous to our atmosphere. 

We looked at some of the astonishing statistics that have been found to occur over normal festive seasons in the USA:

• Between Thanksgiving and New year trash volumes increase by 25% or the equivalent of 1 million tons per week extra. 
• In terms of packaging increases, US Postal service will deliver over 15 billion items of mail over this period.
• The National Christmas tree Association has on record that between 25 to 30 million trees will be bought. 
• Wrapping paper costs gift givers more than $7 million, most of which is thrown out after the season.

There are tons of food that goes to waste: as we cater and eat excessively over this period. 

• More than 68 million turkeys are consumed over this time, with over 200 million pounds of turkey going to waste. 

How to Reduce Household Waste over the Festive Season   

Even if we have the best of intentions to keep our good recycling habits going during this busy holiday season, the extra waste we generate may find its way into our landfills, adding to the amount of greenhouse gases released and ultimately global warming. It is important for each of us to go the extra mile to lessen our footprint at this time.

Below are some ideas to help us achieve this. Christmas waste removal

A Clever Choice of Gifts

This is the time of year we exchange gifts with loved ones, so instead of giving a gift that is sure to land up in the trash, think of something that will be used and appreciated without being thrown away.

• Something simple like chocolates, homemade cookies or other produce, or a good bottle of wine or spirits is something everyone will appreciate and will definitely not end up in the trash can.

• For those people who are difficult to buy for and seem to have everything, make a donation to their favorite charity in their name.  

• Gift someone special with an experience. Theatre tickets to a special show, a luxury spa experience, or a membership to the local art museum are some ideas.

• Purchase a voucher from a local restaurant or shop. These kinds of gifts ensure that local businesses survive these difficult economic times. 

• Everyone loves a beautiful houseplant, and these make great gifts.

• A gift voucher purchased online will enable someone to choose their own gift.

Green Ways of Wrapping Gifts

Use your imagination when choosing gift wrap for your gifts by using recycled or reusable materials.

• Use a reusable shopping bag, or a beautiful scarf to make the wrapping part of the gift. Hide unwrapped gifts around the house for a fun treasure hunt for the kids.
• Use recycled or recyclable wrapping paper and gift bags that can be reused. A rule of thumb is that if the paper can be scrunched up into a ball and it keeps its shape, it is recyclable. 
• Let your children decorate plain brown paper or paper bags from the store with their art to use as unique gift wrap.

Decorate for a Green Christmas

• Use a natural, locally farmed Christmas tree if possible, to lessen the carbon footprint. If you have an artificial Christmas tree, pack it away carefully after Christmas to prevent it from being damaged. 
• Put your LED lights on timers and switch them off when you go to bed. 
• Try making your own decorations using plants, branches, and berries from your garden or neighborhood. Look for recycled decorations in thrift shops. 

Entertaining Guests without the Garbage

• Try to avoid using disposable plates or cutlery at your festive occasions. Use reusable tablecloths and napkins to cut back on trash.
• Cut back on your food waste by encouraging guests to take leftovers away with them.
• Food scraps are a major source of greenhouse gases when they land up in landfills so provide a container for guests to dispose of their food scraps. Add these to your compost or worming bin instead of throwing these out with your household garbage. 
• Put different colored bins out to make it easy for your family and guests to recycle bottles, plastic, and paper. This will also help you to cut down on cleaning up time.

Dealing with Christmas Waste

• Keep as much of your Christmas packaging and boxes ready for reuse next Christmas. 
• Recycle your plastic, paper, cardboard, and glass where possible. Little Green Junk Company can help you with the safe and responsible disposal of all your Christmas waste, and we will recycle where possible.

Why Choose Little Green Junk Company?

At Little Green Junk Company, we specialize in the collection and disposal of all kinds of waste. We can remove your extra holiday trash from your home in the York, Lancaster, and Harrisburg areas efficiently and at a time to suit you. We are a licensed waste removal company, and you can be assured we are as committed to keeping our environment clean as you are. 

Please contact us at 717 467 0070 for a free, transparent, no obligation quote. We look forward to hearing from you. 

Email: inquiries@littlegreenjunk.com

www.littlegreenjunk.com