How to Have an Eco-friendly Christmas

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, Americans throw away 25 percent more trash between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day than they do during the rest of the year. That increase amounts to a 25-million ton gift of trash for Mother Earth -- much worse than getting a lump of coal in her stocking. But the holidays don't have to be trashier! Here are some tips for making the holidays more environmentally friendly.

While it's nice seeing the mailbox full of holiday cards with nice wishes and greetings, those cards make up a large percent of the added paper waste during the holidays. Here's a plan of attack for reducing that waste.

Instead buying tons of Christmas cards and overworking your poor tongue on those envelopes you could send e-cards http://www.bluemountain.com/ , http://www.amazon.com/gp/ecards/homepage , http://www.123greetings.com/ . Or instead of a holiday card featuring a family portrait, find a video camera or a webcam, film your Christmas greetings upload it to youtube and email the link to relatives.

If you must buy Christmas cards, avoid the shiny and laminated holiday cards. They can't be recycled.

Write your holiday message on a paper insert instead of on the card itself so that the card can be reused. A handwritten note to a loved one is more personal and meaningful than some pre-made card.

Get creative and make cards out of magazines, last year's wrapping paper or last year's holiday cards.

Pine trees or Plastic trees? It's difficult to say which is more environmentally friendly. The pros of plastic trees is their reusability, but the bad side is that they are made with petroleum-based products and often shipped from abroad, on fossil-fuel-guzzling container ships.

The use of natural trees also poses environmental drawbacks. They obviously don't last as long as plastic trees, and real tree buyers find themselves picking up bits of pine around their house months after they disposed of the tree. Also, Christmas-tree plantations retain less carbon dioxide than the natural hardwood and pine forests that the plantations are replacing, according to a recent Ohio State University study. Piles of discarded trees decomposing in landfills also emit the gas associated with global warming.

Here are some pointers for making your tree eco-friendly:

Buy a live potted tree that you can plant outside after the holidays.

If you can, opt for a tree grown using organic farming methods.

Bring your Christmas tree to a local recycling center so that it can be used for mulch, beachfront erosion prevention, and lake and river shoreline stabilization: http://www.earth911.org/master.asp

If you live in the Portland, Oregon area, you can rent a Christmas tree: http://www.livingchristmastrees.org/

Buy LED (light emitting diode) Christmas tree lights instead of the conventional ones. They use 95 percent less energy, last longer and give off little heat. You'll ultimately recoup the higher price in lower electric bills.

Avoid buying tinsel and other non-recyclable decorations. Decorate the old fashion way and string up some popcorn and berries.

It's the thought that counts, and it truly counts when you consider what your friends and family really need or want before buying a material gift. When in doubt there are other options:

Get crafty. Knit a scarf or stencil a t-shirt. A handmade gift tends to be appreciated much more and much longer than one that was bought.

Give a gift that tastes or smells good. A gift of chocolate or pretty flowers ensures that your gift will be enjoyed, consumed, and not wasted.

Make a charitable donation in the name of your giftee. It makes both the giver and receiver feel good.

Give gift cards, tickets to movie theatres, plays, or concerts. No packaging or batteries required.

Shopping online is a big time saver, but gifts bought on the Web tend to have more packaging and require the use of extra fuel for their shipping. Buy from stores in your area if possible and be sure to bring your own bag so as not to use up disposable shopping bags.

Gift wrap is often made from virgin materials and constitutes another large part of the extra paper waste made during the holidays.

Try using alternative materials for wrapping gifts like newspapers (the comics are always colorful) and magazines.

Instead of writing buying those "to: ____ from: ____" tags, simply write the names on your one of a kind wrapping paper. Or use a strip of recycled wrapping paper, fold it in half and write the names onto it then tape it onto the gift.

Buy wrapping paper that can be recycled. Again avoid the shiny.

Wrap the gift with fabric or cloth using the Japanese art of Furoshiki

Or better yet don't wrap at all. Use gift bags that are easy to store and reuse.

Here's some ways to have a safe eco-friendly Christmas party:

Rent dishes, utensils, and glassware or use the ones you already have instead of buying disposable ones.

Car pool to holiday parties and you can coordinate a designated driver at the same time.

Turn down the thermostat just before guests arrive. There's no heat like collective body heat.

Prevent wasting food by planning your meals carefully and giving any leftovers to guests or your local food bank.

Have yourselves a very eco-friendly Christmas this year. Don't forget to recycle!