The Christmas tree debate
November 25, 2007
Greening your Holidays
With the holidays approaching, Torontonians will be heading out in droves to pick up Christmas trees and all the trimmings to decorate for the festive season. On the surface, it may seem more eco-friendly to buy a fake tree that can be reused, but according to Earth 911 and the National Christmas Tree Association, real Christmas trees are the best environmental choice.
Check out the pros and cons:
Real:
- grown in Canada and the U.S.
- farm production
- 100% biodegradable plant tissue
- PVC free
- lead free
- carbon neutral (trees absorb carbon dioxide)
- recyclable
- renewable resource
Artificial:
- 85% manufactured in China
- factory production
- non-biodegradable plastics and metals
- not PVC free
- not lead free
- not carbon neutral
- plastic is a petroleum byproduct
- landfill
- non-renewable
Most artificial Christmas trees are made of metals and plastics. The plastic material, typically PVC, can be a potential source of hazardous lead, especially poisonous to children if inhaled. And, even if you reuse an artificial tree for several years, it eventually has to be disposed of and ends up in landfills.
Another positive to buying a real tree is that while they’re growing on tree farms all over north America, they absorb carbon dioxide and other gases and emit clean oxygen. Real Christmas trees are a renewable resource – most growers plant one to three new seedlings for every tree that is harvested.
Once you’ve got your luscious-smelling, beautifully green real tree installed, keep in mind how important it is to recycle it after the holidays. Real trees are biodegradable and can be ground into chips for mulch and other purposes. In fact, according to a December 2005 article in the Globe and Mail, your used tree might even save you from the bird flu. A Toronto pharmaceutical company figured out how to turn shikimic acid extracted from the needles to make the bird flu vaccine Tamiflu.
Other alternatives in the Christmas tree dilemma include live trees, which can be planted after the holidays to liven up your yard for years to come, or getting creative by stringing LED lights over plants you already own.
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