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my christmas waste

Over Christmas, we typically eat lots of food and spend lots of money. The remnants of millions of turkeys, tonnes of plastic packaging and miles of wrapping paper have to go somewhere. This means that over the festive season we produce 25-30% more waste than we normally do. This is unnecessary, expensive and environmentally damaging.

We might be doing some more online shopping this year which often has more packaging than we want or need, please ensure to recycle this by placing it clean, dry and loose into your recycle bin along with all of the other items such as rigid plastics, tins and cans. For some of the larger packaging you may have that will not fit in your bin at home it can be brought to your local civic amenity site.

You can use our waste services locator to find your local bring bank or civic amenity site.

Here, we present 12 simple tips that will help you have a more conscious Christmas by using less and avoiding useless waste, while still having lots of festive fun.

Over 50% of gifts we’ll receive at Christmas are considered useless. Gifting an experience or creating something personal or handmade avoids unnecessary purchases – and can mean more.

We waste a third of what we buy. Every Irish family throws away €700 worth of good food each year. Even when leaving food out for Santa’s reindeer, you can ensure you don’t leave too much!

Millions of Christmas crackers are pulled each year. They are full of plastic and go in the bin after being used for only a few hours. Avoid them where possible or find a reusable option – invest in a good joke book that will last you for years to come!

By reusing more, we can reduce our environmental impact. When it comes to decorating, deck the halls with less, use what you have or buy second hand. You can create a festive atmosphere at home by foraging foliage and displaying natural decorations like pine cones, holly, fruits and nuts. There are also great reusable plastic alternatives to tinsel, like colourful paper bunting/decorations.

Wishing you peace and joy this holiday season