Christmas Recycling

More and more of us are looking for ways to look after the planet – maybe one of your new year’s resolutions is to try and be more eco-conscious. 

With the festive season nearly over, here are some ways you can start your year positively by cutting down on waste. 

1. Recycle your Christmas trees – Christmas trees can be shredded into chipping to be used in parks and other woodland areas. Many local councils offer a Christmas tree collection service, so check your local council website to get rid of your tree easily and responsibly. Next year, why not consider renting a Christmas tree – meaning you can return it after the festive period to be re-planted, ready to rent again next year! Read more about Christmas tree renting here.

2. Repurpose your greetings cards – Plain Christmas cards are recyclable and should be recycled along with other paper. While cards with glitter and other add-ons can’t be recycled, they could be cut up and reused as gift tags for birthdays or next year’s Christmas presents.

3. Check your wrapping paper – Not all wrapping paper can be recycled so it’s important to recycle the ones you can. Some wrapping paper will say “Widely recycled” on. Alternatively you can do the “Scrunch test”: if you scrunch it into a ball and it stays scrunched up it can be recycled with paper; if it unfolds it can’t be. 

4. Upcycle old decorations – If some of your Christmas decorations are looking a bit worse for wear, think twice before throwing them in the bin! There are plenty of ideas and tutorials online about how you can repair them, or upcycle them into decorations you can use for another year. Here’s a crafty example to inspire you.

5. Don’t bin broken fairy lights – 35 million of us admit to throwing away Christmas fairy lights when they’re broken – that’s enough to wrap round the earth nearly 12 times!. Like anything with a plug, battery or cable, fairy lights should be recycled. Use our recycling locator to find your nearest recycling point. 

6. Donate to someone in need – If you received new electrical items as presents this year, don’t bin your old ones or hide them away in drawers! A growing number of charities and reuse organisations are ready to give your unwanted electricals a new lease of life. Donating is also a win-win – reducing demand for raw materials, curbing CO2 emissions and giving low-income households access to affordable goods. Find out more here.

7. Recycle old electricals – If your Christmas lights are broken, you’ve now got a shiny new laptop for Christmas to replace the old one, or have any other unusable electricals, be sure to recycle them. Simply  enter your postcode in our locator to find your nearest donation and recycling points.

What are your sustainable Christmas tips? Let us know by tagging us on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook.