Holiday Waste Reduction Tips
The holiday season brings tradition and celebration, but it also means more waste being sent to the landfill. This year, the City encourages residents to Rethink waste during the holidays.
As Canadians, we tend to generate all forms of holiday waste; packaging, old electronics, food and even toys. There are many ways residents can reduce their environmental impact this holiday season. Simple changes like giving the gift of an experience, discovering new recipes to make with leftovers, using old gift bags or wrapping a present in reusable cloth can make a big impact. Check out Zero Waste Christmas Tips. Below are some great reduction tips for Regina residents.
Green your Giving
- Gift of Service - coupons for doing the dishes, shoveling snow
- Experience - Parks Canada pass, Online music lesson, Online embroidery workshop
- Handmade Gifts or upcycle an item
- Local gift card
- Consumables - bottle of wine or homemade cookies
- Subscription - music, magazine or book club
Waste Free Wrapping
- Reuse last year’s gift bags
- Cloth napkins
- Scarves
- Old paper
- Newspaper
- Old shoe box
Plan your Feast
- Plan out your meals
- Use cloth napkins
- Compost what food scraps you can
- Collect refundable drink containers
- Try out a portion planner
Holiday Waste – What Goes Where
After gifts have been opened, find out how to properly sort common holiday items. Do they belong on the naughty or nice list? Check the Waste Wizard tool to learn more.
Recyclable items
- Wrapping paper (non-foil)
- Paper cards
- Gift bags (non-laminated paper)
- Cardboard boxes (flattened)
- Envelopes
- Plastic and glass containers, bottles and jars
- Cans and aluminum trays
- Christmas trees - Natural
Special Drop Off
- Christmas lights (indoor and outdoor)
- Electronics
- Batteries
Garbage Items
- Wrapping paper with foil, glitter or embellishments
- Card with foil, glitter or embellishments
- Gift bag (coated, laminated or plastic)
- Plastic gift card
- Bubble wrap
- Bows & ribbons
- Styrofoam
- Tissue paper
- Padded envelope
- Plastic air-pack
- Christmas tree (artificial)
Here are some simple steps you can take to minimize single use items and food waste. Every action counts!
Reduce
- Remember to bring reusable bags when grocery shopping. Try to keep a couple heavy-duty bags in the car and some light fold-up ones in a day bag
- Take a paperless coffee break and use a reusable mug
- When offered, decline promotional and single-use items that you don’t need. It’s as easy as saying, “No straw please”
- Give experiences and share memories that don’t need wrapping (e.g. memberships and classes)
- Purchase products with less packaging
- Plan out your meals and use a shopping list to reduce food waste
- Leave grass clippings on your lawn
Reuse
- Repair items if you can before replacing them
- Pack waste-free lunches
- Purchase items second-hand
- Donate items you no longer use to charity
Recycle
- Use your blue cart or a Big Blue Bin depot to recycle acceptable items
- Compost food scraps and yard waste at home by using a backyard composter
Did you know?
The average Canadian household wastes $1,100 a year on food waste. That’s costing Canadians over $17 million a year!
Canadians use up to 15 billion plastic bags every year. On average, a plastic bag is used for only 12 minutes. Plastic bags are not recyclable in the blue cart and should be placed in the garbage.
About one-third of the plastics used in Canada are for single-use or short-lived products and packaging. Plastics such as straws, cutlery, Styrofoam bags and wrappers are not recyclable and should be placed in the garbage.
Let’s all take simple steps to reduce our waste because together we make a big difference.
Not sure where to put an item?
Check out the Waste Wizard tool to find out how to properly dispose or donate common waste items.
