DHEC: Be mindful, not wasteful, this holiday season
COLUMBIA, S.C. (WOLO) – Health officials are encouraging you to be mindful of how much waste you’re producing this holiday season.
The S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control reports as wonderful as the holidays are, it’s also the time of year when people generate tons of waste.
DHEC wants residents to put these 12 recycling and waste reduction tips to use:
- Keep a waste-free kitchen. Look around to determine what you already have on hand before shopping. Make a list of things you need before heading to the store. Compost or donate your unwanted food and recycle your cooking oil.
- Have hard-to-recycle items? Consider only buying materials packaged in what can be recycled in your area. Find where and what you can recycle.
- Give waste-less gifts like your time to clean someone’s house, piano or guitar lessons, gym memberships or certificates for pampering.
- Most wrapping paper cannot be recycled, but you can reuse something to wrap with instead like paper bags, newspaper, maps or reusable grocery bags. Also, reuse greeting cards to make gift tags.
- Stop unwanted mail. Check out ecocycle.org/junkmail for six easy steps. Make sure to recycle mail with your paper as well.
- Prevent food waste by providing reusable containers or asking your guests to bring their own for leftovers.
- Use LED lights, which last 10 times longer and use 80 percent less energy. Recycle your old strings of lights.
- Go with an eco-deco theme by decorating with natural materials like greenery, gourds, fresh fruit and pine cones — all which can be composted.
- Set up a collection corner at your party by providing an area where guests can bring unwanted items to swap or donate.
- Always let your guests know what can be recycled and composted. Clearly, mark your bins and let guests know where they’re located.
- Provide a green dining experience by using dishes and silverware instead of disposables.
- Grind those greens. If you decorated a real tree and are ready for it to go, remember to find out where your county will be accepting them for grinding.
