How to make your holiday season more eco-friendly

MetroCreative

Come the holiday season, it can be easy to overlook certain things, like eco-friendly living, in an effort to make entertaining easier. The holiday season has become a time of excess, with large meals, an overabundance of presents and other wasteful measures.

This year, environmentally conscious hosts can make an effort to make their celebrations more environmentally friendly.

* Purchase locally made gifts to reduce the amount of shipping required. This cuts down on materials used and fossil fuels that power planes or cargo ships needed to transport products made overseas.

* According to the Environmental Protection Agency, roughly 40 percent of all battery sales take place during the holidays. Consumers concerned about the effect of batteries on the environment can give only battery-free gifts.

* Make your own gifts. Not all gifts have to be bought at the store. There are many meaningful gifts that can be made by hand, and homemade gifts cut back on potentially harmful production practices and transportation.

* Rely on natural items when decorating your home. When decking the halls this holiday season, collect pine cones and holly from outdoors and make garlands from raffia or vines. These materials can be put into compost heaps or ground up into mulch later on, reducing waste.

* Cut back on lighting by reducing the number of lights you string up on your home and choosing energy-efficient lights. LED lights, which use up to 95 percent less energy than traditional bulbs, is another way to leave a smaller carbon footprint this holiday season.

* Avoid especially flashly wrapping paper. Glossy or metallic wrapping paper is hard to recycle. Use paper made of natural fibers or select plain postage paper and dress up presents with reusable ribbons and bows.

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