Plastic-Free Christmas Decorations

All I want is a Christmas without plastic.

At Christmas we celebrate one of the most important moments of the year. At Christmas we are closest to the people we love, and at Christmas we also live by the principle that more is better.

Christmas decorations are everywhere in Romanian homes, and the trend of recent years has favoured the artificial tree and decorations made of plastic at the expense of the real thing.

Even though at first glance the use of synthetic materials seems to offer the advantage of reuse in the years that follow, the environmental impact is still there, because making them relies on fossil fuels.

Manufacturing processes also involve heavy energy consumption and carbon emissions that add to the pollution of the environment.

Which tree is kinder to the environment, the plastic one or the real one?

According to studies, the average working life of a plastic Christmas tree is 6 years.

The vast majority of plastic Christmas trees are made in China, and the carbon emissions from manufacturing a 2-metre tree and shipping it to the customer come to roughly 48 kg of CO₂ equivalent.

That environmental impact is around 16 times greater than that of a real tree.

At this point you will say that the environmental impact of using a real tree is greater, given that real trees are grown to be used just once a year.

The reality, however, is rather different: Christmas trees are grown on plantations, according to demand.

In the Netherlands alone, roughly 2.5 to 2.7 million trees are grown and sold every year.

Is a real tree more sustainable?

A real Christmas tree is grown specifically to be harvested.

A fir plantation not only fails to produce CO₂, it absorbs it from the air and gives off oxygen.

In practical terms, one hectare of fir plantation supplies the daily oxygen for around 44 people.

On top of that, fir plantations filter harmful substances such as methane out of the air.

Choose a fir wreath or a tree made by florists.

Even so, nothing compares with the scent of real fir in those magical moments when the whole family gathers around a table laden with good things.

Florists have adapted to what the market wants and now offer Christmas decorations made from natural, environmentally friendly materials, both in their shops and with home delivery.

A Christmas wreath or a hand-made tree is a far greener alternative to artificial fir decorations, precisely because it uses only a small amount of real fir.

To make these decorations, florists use natural, environmentally friendly materials.

The round base is made of straw, and the real fir comes from the Netherlands, which makes it noticeably longer lasting.

Florists also use natural elements such as dried fruit, fir cones, cinnamon, cotton, greenery and little wooden figures.

Conclusion

We can strike a balance between sustainability and the pleasure that the scent of real fir gives us around the holidays. Another option is to choose a potted tree that we can plant out once Christmas has passed.

Personally, I find plastic dressed up as fir branches quite off-putting.