The Environmental Protection Agency is asking Carlow householders not to forget to recycle all the parcel wrapping and the sweet wrappers that they use this Christmas.
Christmas time produces more waste than at any other time of the year, according to the EPA, and this waste does not have to end up in the dump. Households in Carlow recycled 33.6 per cent of their waste this year, according to the most recent data available from the EPA.
“The goal to aim for is not simply recycling, but waste prevention – we can all take some simple steps to reduce the amount of waste we generate over the festive season, and make sure we recycle what we can. We would encourage people to make waste prevention a New Year’s resolution and we challenge them to see how empty they can keep their black bin in 2009,” said Gerry Byrne from the EPA.
The EPA says there are a few ways to a greener Christmas including giving vouchers instead of items people don’t want. Also choose decorations that can be reused.
On the eve of Christmas, they suggest buying just enough food to cover your needs but not so much that you will have to dispose of what goes out of date. One third of food bought is actually dumped by consumers. In addition, only prepare what you know will be consumed at dinner to save on waste.
The EPA says with so much wrapping around, recycle, buy rechargeable batteries, compost your Christmas leftovers and don’t throw away your cards – recycle them.
After the festivities are over and the last cracker is pulled in the New Year, don’t forget to recycle your Christmas tree –– trees can be shredded and shavings used for landscaping at Kernanstown recycling centre or Powerstown Recycling Centre. And if there were presents you didn’t want, rather than just dump them, give any unwanted presents to your local charity shop.
For more prevention tips including waste, water, energy and eco-travel, see www.greenhome.ie
