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THIS
Christmas season, do something good for the environment
as well.
An
environment-advocacy group on Monday called for a simple
Christmas celebration with the call that will help lead
the way in “greening” the coming festivities or
observance of “ecological celebration.”
Bishop
Deogracias Iñiquez Jr., chairman, permanent committee on
public affairs of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of
the Philippines, joined The EcoWaste Coalition in
appealing to every Filipinos to refuse crass
consumerism.
“Following the example of the Babe in the Manger,
Christmas should be a time of strengthening His light
within us so that we can give, receive and spread the
real gifts of Christmas—hope, love, charity, peace and
joy,” Bishop Iñiquez said, adding that “we pray that we
will have more of this inner radiance and less of the
store-bought glitter and pomp that quickly fade away at
the end of the season.”
LJ
Pasion, a youth campaigner from The EcoWaste Coalition,
said that it is about time to pay attention to the
ecological and health costs of the choices that we make
this Christmastime.
“Any
action we take to prevent waste and pollution as we
rejoice in the birth of the Redeemer will go a long way
in conserving our depleted resources and in curbing
climate change,” Pasion said.
The
EcoWaste Coalition pointed out that over-the-top
decorations, marketing gimmicks, shopping extravaganzas,
and the ubiquitous trash created by the holiday frenzy
have increasingly shrouded the true meaning of
Christmas.
The
group disclosed that the highly commercialized
observance of Christmas and other popular festivities
aggravate the country’s environment and health problems.
Unfettered consumption eats up huge quantities of raw
materials and energy, and generates all types of waste
and pollutants, including greenhouse-gas emissions that
cause our planet to heat up.
Also,
such thoughtless celebrations predictably produce tons
upon tons of holiday trash. Metro
Manila’s trash generation of about 8,000 cubic meters daily is
expected to go up by one-third during the Christmas
season due to the consumption spree.
Household bins will brim over with mixed discards, while
stinking “guerrilla” dumpsites mushroom in street
corners, sidewalks and vacant lots.
Plastic
bags, disposable containers, packaging materials,
kitchen waste and party leftovers from the flurry of
Christmas activities usually end up in poor communities
where these are dumped or burned, endangering the health
of residents with toxic pollution.
To guide
the public, The EcoWaste Coalition released a 25-point
“Eco-Advisory on Greening and Simplifying Christmas,”
containing practical steps on how to prevent drowning in
waste and toxins during the joyful season.
Christmas decorations
1.
Recreate the scene of Nativity using recycled materials.
Let your home, school, barangay or church belen mirror
the profound meaning of the Redeemer’s birth amid the
simplicity and poverty of the manger.
2.
Recycle decorations from previous celebrations or create
new ones from discards or from what you already have.
Decorate with used materials or natural ornaments as
much as possible.
3. Reuse
old Christmas trees or create your own using potted
plants or trees, twigs or broomsticks.
4. If
you are to buy some holiday decorations, look for items
that are locally made, nontoxic, reusable and require no
electricity.
Christmas lights
1.
Create garlands made of recycled materials such as old
cards, gift wraps and ribbons, instead of Christmas
lights to cut on energy use.
2. If
you intend to adorn your home, workplace, barangay hall
or church with holiday lights, choose safe,
energy-efficient and long-lasting lights such as
light-emitting diode bulbs. Only use Christmas lights
and electrical ornaments approved by the Bureau of
Product Standards.
3. Use
your Christmas lights sparingly. Consider lighting them
up only as Christmas nears and only when needed. Turn
them off during daylight hours. Switch them off whenever
you’re away or asleep.
4.
Refrain from overgarnishing your place with Christmas
lights. The number of lights and the size of your
electric bills have nothing to do with the true spirit
of Christmas.
5. Stop
competing for the cutest, brightest and longest
Christmas lighting in your neighborhood. Conserve
electricity and celebrate in the savings that you can
share with Christmas carolers in your neighborhood.
Christmas parties
1.
Refuse to organize lavish and wasteful parties.
Collectively decide in favor of more austere gatherings
and give the money saved to individuals or families in
need.
2.
Refrain from using throw-away utensils and plastic and
Styrofoam containers. Go for reusables that can be
washed and reused.
3.
Enforce basic ecological management of party discards:
implement a convenient system for separating the
biodegradable and nonbiodegradable discards, reuse or
recycle the biodegradables, feed the food leftovers to
animals, or compost them to make natural soil enhancers.
4.
Choose reusable cloth napkins instead of single-use
paper napkins. You can make cheap cloth napkins from
cheesecloth or flour bags. Simply wash and store for
future use.
Christmas shopping
1.
Reject any overspending during the holidays. Spend
sensibly and avoid stress and debt from impulsive
shopping.
2.
Organize your Christmas shopping wisely to avoid hasty
purchases and also to cut fuel costs and greenhouse-gas
emissions. Walk, cycle or takethe jeepney, bus or train
whenever possible.
3. Bring
with you a reusable carry bag, basket or bayong when you
shop. Say no to plastic bags!
4. Stay
away from items with too much wrapping. Think of the
litter that will be created by all those plastic, paper,
carton, styro peanuts and other packaging materials.
Choose eco-friendly products!
Christmas gifts
1. Give
your community a special gift this Christmastime: lead
or participate in a project that will benefit the poor
or improve the community environment.
2.
Gather unused gifts, old clothes, toys and books and
donate them to a charitable institution.
3.
Personalize gifts by making them yourself. Why not gift
friends and family with your specialty dish, plants from
your own backyard, scrapbooks, or a CD music selection.
It gives the receiver the feeling that you took the time
and effort to create the gift for her/him.
4. Give
products or delicacies from your province. Go for
fruits, vegetables, plants, sweets, condiments,
decorative and functional crafts, etc.
5. Give
environment-friendly gifts made of recycled materials or
products, or services that advocate sustainable living.
Share items that will teach recycling such as handouts,
primers and manuals providing recycling ideas.
6.
Choose gifts that do not need to be wrapped, such as
potted plants, massage from blind masseurs, gift checks,
concert tickets, raffle tickets, etc.
7. If
you need to wrap the gift, use old magazines or
newspapers (especially the comics section), old
bandannas, etc. You can also use craft paper and jazz it
up with colored pencils.
8. Call
or send e-cards to family and friends with Internet
access. Create your own greeting card to give it a more
personal touch or buy cards from groups with a special
mission or advocacy. |
