Wednesday, December 3, 2008

The greenest Christmas


If you switch your holiday lights to LEDs, as was done on the tree in New York's famous Rockefeller Center, you can save 50-70 percent of the electrical cost of lighting your tree.

By SHAWN DELL JOYCE

Creators Syndicate

Nothing says Christmas quite like a wild evergreen decked out with sparkling lights and loaded with gift-wrapped boxes. Before you head out into the woods with your ax, consider a greener alternative.

The greenest tree is a potted Douglas fir from a local nursery, which you can plant outdoors in warm weather. Your little fir will clean your indoor air during the holidays and clean carbon out of the atmosphere year-round when you transplant it. If you bought a live tree every year and planted it in spring, you could offset your family's carbon footprint in 20 years and create a green holiday tradition.

The next in line for the "Greenest Tree Award" goes to the locally grown cut tree. Locally grown trees and greens are agricultural products that add to the economic and environmental health of your region. These trees are grown specifically for the holidays on marginal lands that wouldn't support other crops. Buying one of these trees stimulates your local economy and improves the life of a local farm family.

"Go without a twinge of environmental guilt," suggests Deborah Brown, a horticulturist from the University of Minnesota Extension Service. "During the seven to 10 years that a Christmas tree grows, the tree provides wildlife habitat and helps hold the soil and prevent erosion," Brown says. "Commercial tree operations plant and harvest trees every year. Each year's harvest is quickly renewed, and tree farms never strip large portions of land for a single year's holiday greenery."

If you live in a place where a live tree won't work, consider a secondhand artificial tree. Plastic trees require major amounts of petroleum to manufacture, which generates tons of greenhouse gases. Plus they are generally not recyclable, and they wind up in landfills. Using that secondhand tree for several years helps to lessen its environmental impact. It is usually more economical than a cut tree. If you have an artificial-tree producer in your community, buy it from them instead of from a big-box store.

What you put on your tree is also important when considering its environmental impact. At the risk of sounding "Grinchy," those lovely twinkling lights can generate as much global warming pollution as about 250,000 cars, according to the Union of Concerned Scientists. That means that if you decorate your home and tree with 10 strands of 100 bulbs lit eight hours a day from Thanksgiving to New Year's, it can cost you up to $200. Powering the same amount of light-emitting diode mini lights would cost less than $10.

Why not donate all your old lights to The Salvation Army and invest in LED mini lights? Don't balk at the higher cost of LEDs; you'll get that money back on your electric bill. Generally, LEDs will pay for themselves in the first two years. An added benefit is there is less likelihood of fires because LEDs give off very little heat, and they last up to 20 years.

Tinsel and plastic decorations are environmental hazards. Most are made from plastics that cannot be recycled and may photodegrade when exposed to sunlight. That means that they break down into smaller and smaller particles that get absorbed into living things and wind up in our bodies.

What you put under the tree is as important as what you put on the tree. Wrapping paper is expensive and often used only once before winding up in a landfill. Many of the shiny parts of wrapping paper are environmental hazards. Consider buying recycled wrapping paper, or better yet, make your own. Paper grocery bags turned inside out make sturdy wrapping paper that can be decorated with real holly, straw and other natural materials. Putting unwrapped gifts in reusable tote bags instead of gift bags is like two gifts in one.

E-mailing cards is the greenest way to send holiday greetings. Homemade cards or cards printed on 100 percent recycled paper are the next best. Opt for cards with enclosed coupons or gift certificates instead of mailing bulky gifts to far-flung relations. Bulky gifts take much more gas to deliver and generate more emissions in the process.

When entertaining for the holidays, plan seasonal menus, and cook what is available locally in your area, even if it takes a little extra effort and money. This reduces the "food miles" your ingredients travel and generates fewer greenhouse gases. If you are a guest, bring a bottle of local wine or a dessert from a local baker. When you buy from local food producers, you spread the wealth locally and get an interesting story to tell at the dinner table.




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