One out of five (20 percent) of Americans will forgo wrapping holiday gifts this year to reduce holiday waste, according to a new survey from ecoATM, a nationwide network of device recycling kiosks.
More than half (52 percent) of respondents said they will reuse gift wrapping, ribbon and gift bags from previous holidays. Some 17 percent plan to use newspaper or other recycled paper to wrap gifts. Almost three quarters (74 percent) plan to do something this season to reduce their waste.
Eight percent of respondents say they don’t plan to fill any trash bags with wrapping paper, ribbon, gift bags or product packaging. However, 19 percent say they will fill four or more bags this holiday season.
In addition to gift wrapping and ribbon waste, the holidays can also be a time when e-waste increases as many consumers unwrap new gadgets. Thirty percent of consumers plan to buy electronic items as gifts this holiday, adding to the growing number of discarded devices, according to the National Retail Federation.
Household waste increases more than 25 percent from Thanksgiving to New Year's Day, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This contributes to an additional one million tons of waste a week in U.S. landfills during the holidays.
If you are still wondering what to get your loved ones that also help repurpose waste, benefit people in need, get back to basics and help to save the planet, check out the SB 2014 Holiday Gift Guide.
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Founder, Hower Impact
Mike Hower is the founder of Hower Impact — a boutique consultancy delivering strategic communication advisory and support for corporate sustainability, ESG and climate tech.
Published Dec 10, 2014 11am EST / 8am PST / 4pm GMT / 5pm CET