Make This Christmas Eco-Friendly

Want to be more eco-friendly this year with your Christmas decorations? With just a few changes to your holiday routine, you can make this Christmas a green one!

Use LED lights rather than incandescent bulbs. These lights are more energy-efficient and last up to 10,000 hours longer than traditional Christmas lights.

Did you know that leaving your Christmas lights on all the time will cost you four times more than if you turned the lights off at dusk (6 hours at a time)? Also, think about the pollution. Most retailers sell timers for your Christmas lights. Pick one up the next time you're out. Set it to go on at dusk and to turn off when you go to bed.

If you have a church or work Christmas party, ask others if they need a ride or if they can pick you up. Do the carpool thing. Besides helping to reduce pollution, you'll be spreading Christmas cheer!

Make this Christmas an "organic" holiday. Use materials from nature to decorate your home. Arrange fresh boughs of firs and evergreens in a bowl. Or some pinecones and berries on the mantel. Don't forget the poinsettias and other seasonal plants. Also, all of these decorations can be composted after the holidays.

Use eco-friendly shipping materials this year. Use old newspapers or scraps from your office shredder to pack presents you are mailing out of state or across town.

Cut Christmas trees are grown year round so forests are never depleted. Artificial trees are made with petroleum-based materials and usually travel thousands of miles before you pick one out at Target or Wal-mart. They also usually end up in a landfill. Cut trees can be recycled.

Try to pick gifts that are not battery-operated. As with most non-eco friendly things, batteries will end up in a landfill and leak toxic metals into the soil and groundwater. If you buy gifts that don't require batteries, you will be preventing this. If you do have to buy a battery-operated toy, get one that requires rechargeable batteries.

Instead of going nuts with the wrapping, use gift bags. These can be recycled. Decorate them yourself and recycle holiday cards. Make your own holiday cards. Save your ribbons and bows and use them again next year.

When the season is over, ground your tree into woodchips and use it for garden mulch. Call your local utility department and find out where you can go to have your tree recycled.

Have a Green Christmas!