It’s almost that time of year again when friends and families come together to share in the joyful season, exchange gifts, enjoy holiday festivities and food, and cherish moments spent with the ones you love. It’s a time to show the ones you love how much you appreciate them.

However, as the holidays become more about gift-giving rather than being with friends and family, the demand for online shopping rapidly increases adding to further consumerism.

Though the convenience, speed, and lower prices of e-commerce make last-minute shopping easier, it’s the environment that ultimately bears the cost of these consumer choices.

Online shopping, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic, has rapidly grown and is driven by giants such as Amazon and Walmart. These companies have completely transformed e-commerce and monopolized on consumers’ expectations of fast, convenient and free shipping.

In June 2020, global e-commerce sales reached a new peak of 22 billion monthly visits, equating to $26.7 trillion in sales. This new peak of online shopping perfectly describes the effects of speed, competitive pricing and convenience on consumer demand.

However, to meet these expectations created by big corporations, the environment must bear the cost. The packaging and shipping of goods heavily contributes to greenhouse gas emissions and plastic waste.

In 2020, the transportation and return of products accounted for 37% of total greenhouse gas emissions in the e-commerce sector.

The packaging is a major component of these emissions. The majority of items you order online are wrapped in multiple layers of plastic and cardboard to ensure a safe delivery to your doorstep.

The forest conservation group Canopy reports that 3 billion trees are pulped each year to produce 241 million tons of shipping cartons. This scale of deforestation depletes natural carbon sinks and creates an enormous amount of waste.

Also, less than 15% of this packaging is recycled! This means that it directly ends up in landfills adding to an already pressing issue for the environment.

So what can you do as an individual consumer?

You can start by consolidating online orders into a single order, get ahead of the holiday season, and order gifts early and through slower shipping methods instead of same-day delivery.

You can also limit the amount of returns as this contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions. Or you can support local stores.

Lastly, when you are all done using the cardboard boxes, come by Recycle Utah to recycle your boxes. Recycle Utah also re-sells moving boxes and packaging materials (cardboard boxes, packing peanuts, and bubble wrap).

By making mindful choices this holiday season, you can celebrate sustainably, reducing your environmental impact while still spreading joy to those you love.

Recycle Utah, your community non-profit drop-off recycling center, provides these weekly tips. Visit their website for more information — www.recycleutah.org.

The post Green Tips: How to reduce impact of online shopping appeared first on Park Record.

Halloween is such a fun and exciting time of the year for many! Halloween offers the chance to dress up as your favorite characters, indulge in (too much) candy, enjoy seasonal activities, and decorate the house.

But have you ever wondered where all the halloween costumes, decorations, and candy wrappers end up? Some people may reuse their costumes, share them with friends, or donate them, but many people don’t. Most people just throw away their single-use costume where it ends up sitting in the landfill, adding to a concerning amount of waste.

In the United States, over 35 million costumes are discarded each year. That is roughly 2,000 tons of plastic waste, equivalent to 83 million plastic bottles. The majority of Halloween costumes are made of plastic polymer or non-recyclable oil-based plastics, which means they are destined to end up in landfills. Polyester can take anywhere between 20 and 200 years to decompose. On top of all that, four out of 10 costumes are worn only once.

Despite all of these spooky statistics, there are many creative alternatives to help reduce Halloween waste and still enjoy all the festivities! First, instead of buying a brand-new costume, check out any local thrift stores that sell costumes such as the Christian Center, Savers, and Deseret Industries. You may be able to find used costumes for a much cheaper price.

You may also find unique pieces and materials to create your own costume! A costume I have made in the past was a jellyfish using an umbrella I already had at home, LED lights, and some ribbon I bought at a thrift store. This costume does not take long to create and I only used materials I already had at home or small items that I will use again in the future. This idea was not only eco-friendly, but very creative and unique.

Another idea of how to be more eco-friendly is by swapping costumes with friends and family. This way, you are reusing costumes instead of throwing them away. Or you can swap certain parts of a costume to create your own one-of-a-kind costume! Maybe you are done with a costume and don’t know where else to put it, you can donate it to a nearby school for them to use in school plays, or at a local thrift store.

The post Green Tips: How to be More Sustainable with Halloween Costumes appeared first on Park Record.

As the seasons are about to change, Utah’s mountains become a popular destination for residents eager to witness the vibrant autumn colors. The diverse landscape offers some of the most breathtaking fall colors and foliage, making it an ideal time and place for many outdoor activities such as hiking, camping, photography and scenic drives.

Some of the best places to visit are the Big and Little Cottonwood Canyons and Guardsman Pass, which all offer amazing views.

But how are you getting to these destinations? Every Utah resident is familiar with the frustration of dealing with traffic driving in and out of the canyons. Sitting in your car for hours is not something anyone wants to do especially when heading to and from events such as Snowbird’s Oktoberfest.

So what are simple, environmentally-friendly alternatives to driving? Carpooling and public transportation are a great start! According to the Environmental Protection Agency, driving/transportation is one of the biggest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions. Other modes of transportation that result in direct emissions are trucks, ships, trains, and planes.

A study shows “in 2022, direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions from transportation accounted for 29% of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions” (EPA).

So instead of driving up the canyons by yourself, carpool with your friends and family! It’s an easy way to reduce your carbon footprint while also saving money on gas and parking. If driving does not work for you, you can always check out public transportation through the Utah Transit Authority. They provide a few apps you can download on your mobile device to track the public transit and the locations they stop at to reach your destination.

The next time you venture into Utah’s stunning mountains, consider switching to eco-friendly transportation options. Not only will you lower your carbon footprint, but you’ll make the journey more enjoyable.

So let’s embrace the changing seasons and create a cleaner environment!

Recycle Utah, your community non-profit drop-off recycling center, provides these weekly tips. Visit their website for more information — www.recycleutah.org.

The post Green Tips: Change driving habits as seasons change appeared first on Park Record.