I’m dreaming of a green Christmas

By Alice Guskov, Second Year, Astrophysics

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, but, not to be the Grinch, it’s also the most polluting time.

For those who celebrate, Christmas is a nostalgic time with deep historical roots, but its changed significantly throughout the years. Christmas as we know it today can be traced to the Victorian period after Prince Albert married Queen Victoria. He popularised the Christmas tree (albeit upside down ones) as well as the tradition of decorating them, and the first Christmas cards and crackers were also seen in this era. The Victorians emphasised the importance of family activities at Christmas such as preparing Christmas dinner, giving gifts and playing games together.

The modern world and social media have shifted the way we celebrate Christmas. Capitalism has taken over the festive period by pumping out advertisements to the public as soon as the leaves stop falling off the trees and coming up with new products every year to keep the dopamine levels in our brains up, priming us to spend.

This creates a disproportionate amount of waste for the planet. The waste management company Biffa reports that 365,000 km of unrecyclable wrapping paper and 1 billion cards end up in landfills annually. A study conducted at the University of Manchester found that the amount of meat consumed at Christmas produces the same carbon footprint as 6,000 car trips around the globe, with the average turkey Christmas dinner creating a footprint of 20kg of carbon dioxide. In addition, approximately 8 million trees are sent to landfills each year in the UK alone.

That being said, the issue of Christmas trees is slightly more nuanced than all bad. While fake Christmas trees can be used again and again, and so prevent people from buying a new tree every year, they are usually made of petroleum-based plastics and metal which are non-biodegradable. Growing real Christmas trees takes approximately 10 years, in which time they use up land that could otherwise facilitate more diverse biomes. On the other hand, these plantations may boost biodiversity on brownfield land, helping reduce the amount of carbon in the atmosphere. After the festive period, the trees can be recycled or shredded into wood chippings.

Every day people aren’t the ones contributing most to the climate crisis, but we have power in numbers with which to influence the companies we buy from. A way to do this is embracing green Christmases, and the WWF has listed some useful tips to practice this. For example, prioritising quality gifts rather than quantity. Reduce your food waste, eat seasonally or swap out some meats for plants. You could make your own unique decorations for your home, or make sure to use LED lights while decorating, which are much better for the environment.