Preventing a ‘Very Wasteful’ Holiday…
Every year around this time, millions of gifts are given and received across the country in conjunction with the various holiday celebrations that occur. It is our hope that with the December edition of our newsletter, that you will be armed with the knowledge of how to best dispose of your holiday gift wrappings.
As fun as this celebrated practice can be, the improper disposal of wrappings, boxes, and bags can be incredibly wasteful! This year, take a second out of your busy holiday schedule, and #ThinkBeforeYouThrow® your gift-wrappings and packing into a trash or recycling receptacle.
1. A Cardboard {Remember} Reminder
As online shopping popularity increases across the country, mail and packaging carriers are delivering cardboard shipping boxes to homes in higher numbers than ever before. It is important to remember that ALL of these corrugated cardboard boxes are highly valuable material and should ALWAYS be placed at the curb with your recycling (not with your trash). American Disposal Services will accept any size and any quantity of cardboard boxes, but please make sure to break-down boxes as flat as possible so that our trucks can pick up their loads as quickly and efficiently as possible.
DON’T FORGET…
The following items are made of cardboard or a cardboard-like product known as paperboard that should also be recycled:
- Large Gift boxes (used for boxing clothing, etc.)
- Small Gift boxes (used for boxing jewelry, etc)
- Any color packing boxes
- Any color shipping boxes
- Paper Gift/Tote/Shopping Bags
2. Wrapping Paper…To Recycle or Not to Recycle?
In the industry, when trying to determine if a paper product is recyclable, we often go by the simple rule, ‘If it tears, throw it into the recycling bin.’ However, wrapping paper poses several issues when it comes to recycling. Many of the materials used to create specialty wrapping paper include dyes, laminations, non-paper additives like glitter, foil, or plastic, and tape. All of these added materials deem most wrapping papers NON-Recyclable.
If you are using a wrapping paper for your gifts that contains any of the before mentioned items, your paper will more than likely end up in a landfill. That having been said, if you choose to be a ‘Green Wrapper’, higher quality papers do exist that can be recycled which are free of any foils, glitter, or add-ons. Tape will have to be removed after opening.
For most of us, this seems like an extremely tedious undertaking. Luckily, there are some Green options for wrapping that aren’t as complicated.
* Newspaper
I often choose to wrap my gifts in newsprint, which is not only recyclable, but also VERY inexpensive. Recipients always have fun reading the print before opening the gift. Not to mention, the gifts can look very pretty. Hint: If you are wrapping for a child, try using the comics section of the newspaper for a fun surprise!
* Gift Bags
Many gift bags come in non-dyed, non-laminated paper stock (see right). Although these bags do not have all of the sparkle and shine that others may have, you can spruce up your gifts by stamping or decorating your own recyclable bags. If you have children, it may make for a very fun holiday activity decorating and creating your family’s special holiday gift-giving bags.
Remember, if you wrap your gifts in recyclable materials, your recipients won’t have to worry about the recyclability of the packaging.
* Make the gift wrap a part of the gift
Oftentimes the present itself can create the wrapping of the gift. For example, scarves, soft blankets, or even reusable shopping bags, can create very GREEN wrappings for gifts (see above image for an example of how scarves can be used to create very elegant packaging materials).
