Opinion | Growing environmental apathy during the holiday season

Katie Reul, News Editor

I was a tree-hugger as a child; there’s substantial evidence of it buried deep in the archives of my mother’s digital photo library to prove it. Maybe it was just undiagnosed social anxiety working its magic, but I genuinely looked to nature for companionship. 

So, it was no skin off my back when my parents pulled out the artificial tree each year come holiday season instead of cutting down a real one. Besides, I’m technically Jewish. And I eagerly awaited the annual theatrical viewing of my father struggling to assemble it, complete with sighs, forehead wrinkles and a certain melodramatic gusto. 

It wasn’t until recently I actually started to think about the implications that mass consumption of Christmas trees has on an environmental level. Where do all of these trees go once Christmas day has come and gone? While certain programs offer to recycle used Christmas trees into mulch for agricultural use, about 10 million Christmas trees end up in landfills across the country, as they’re unable to be replanted without their roots.

Meanwhile, the American Christmas Tree Association reveals that if households reused the same artificial tree for four years, the carbon footprint would be less than that of a consumer purchasing a new, living tree every year. Thus, the obvious solution is to reduce, reuse and recycle. The organization concedes that regardless of choosing an artificial or real Christmas tree, the result accounts for less than 0.1% of the average person’s carbon footprint. Even so, why not opt for the more eco-friendly option, regardless of however small the margin?

While this percentage is a miniscule fragment of an overarching trend of environmental degradation, parallels can be drawn in the capitalist mindset of Christmas tree purchasing and the similar manifestations of buy-and-sell antics during the alleged season of giving. 

The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that household waste increases during the holidays by about 25% – an alarming figure when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration estimates between, on average, 30 to 40% of the American food supply is put to waste. The uptick relates back to the idea of overconsumption, with Christmas eve and Thanksgiving viewed through a narrow lens as the opportunity for feasting more so than providing and appreciating. 

The same can be said for the continued support of fast fashion, which appeals to gift-buyers with low priced, cheaply produced garments often made through exploitation of underpaid laborers in developing countries. Fast fashion is responsible for 10% of global carbon emissions by drying up water sources, contributing to the majority of landfills and releasing the equivalent of 50 billion plastic bottles worth of microfibers into the ocean each year. Many of these clothing items utilize synthetic fibers that will only begin to biodegrade centuries after production. Yet, the incentivization of bargain prices keeps customers coming back for more.

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has only made the problem worse due to the increase in online shopping, which, according to National Geographic, is an added detriment to the environment because of the carbon emissions that are a byproduct of transporting these items. The more rapid the shipping method, the more environmentally harmful it is, as many of these rushed-out items rely on diesel trucks to get to their respective destinations.

With all the data in mind, the onus lies on the individual to consciously think eco-friendly, even if that means subbing real for plastic when picking out this year’s tree. And instead of contributing to problematic corporations, customers can hit the thrift stores for unique gifts that, in turn, won’t burden their pockets. The truth is, the stigma of receiving a “used” gift is a further reflection on just how far we’ve drifted from the innate message of gratitude that the holiday season is supposed to convey.

So, if you’re still keeping those Zara jeans on your Christmas list, you might as well just wait for Santa to bring you some coal instead. You can burn it for fossil fuels. It’s pretty much the same thing.