How to Have a Clean and Green Christmas

After the holidays, it’s common to find your recycling bins and trash bags overflowing. In fact, waste increases by about 30% during this season. Between wrapping paper, food packaging, and decorations, the festive season can quickly turn into a season of waste. But with a little planning, you can keep much of that waste out of the landfill. Let’s explore what can be recycled, composted, or responsibly disposed of this year.

Wrapping paper is one of the biggest recyclables of the season—as long as it’s free of glitter, metallic designs, or plastic coatings. If you’re still shopping for wrapping supplies, consider eco-friendly options like recyclable paper, reusable fabric, or gift bags that can be used year after year. Items like paperboard food boxes, egg cartons, and milk jugs from holiday feasts can also go straight into your recycling bin. Bi-metal cans, such as those used for vegetables and soups, can be recycled too, but be sure to give them a quick rinse to avoid attracting pests. If you’ve accumulated a mountain of cardboard boxes from online shopping or gift deliveries, flatten them out and recycle them at a convenience center, curbside, or at one of the drop-offs around town. Cardboard is a valuable recyclable material that’s easy to keep out of the waste stream.

Some items commonly mistaken for recyclables need to go in the trash. Milk and juice cartons, despite their paper-like feel, have plastic linings that make them unrecyclable. Tinsel and garland, though festive, can cause serious problems at recycling centers by tangling up machinery, so it’s important to dispose of these items in the garbage.

Certain items, like live Christmas trees and old electronics, may not fit into your regular recycling plan. Fortunately, the annual "Bring One for the Chipper: Tree and Electronics Recycling Event" makes it easy to dispose of them responsibly. This year, the event will take place on January 4, 2025 from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. at Home Depot on Shugart Road. Live trees, electronics, and cardboard can all be dropped off for recycling. Please note that data will not be wiped from electronic devices, so be sure to clear any personal information beforehand. While recycling computer or TV monitors is free, a $10 donation is appreciated. All collected Christmas trees will be chipped by Whitfield County Public Works and turned into mulch for use in local parks. As an added bonus, participants can pick up free seeds and seedlings for their spring gardens, courtesy of Keep Georgia Beautiful, Ferry Morse, Georgia Forestry, and Home Depot.

If you compost, the holidays provide plenty of materials to keep your bin full. Fruit and vegetable scraps from holiday cooking are perfect for composting, as are live wreaths that have been broken into smaller pieces. Tissue paper can also be added to your compost pile as a carbon-rich material. For those who enjoy eco-friendly decorations, a popcorn and cranberry garland is a classic option that can go straight into the compost bin once the holiday season ends. Even natural potpourri, made with oranges, cranberries, and cinnamon, can be composted after it has served its purpose though the materials in potpourri take longer to break down so expect to sift those materials out for a few rounds of decomposition.

After the holidays, it’s common to find yourself with gifts you don’t need, older decorations you no longer use, or excess food. Local shelters, thrift stores, and food banks are always grateful for donations, especially during the colder months when many people are in need. By donating, you can give your items a second life and help those in your community.

The holidays are about creating memories and cherishing time with loved ones. This year, extend that care to the planet by making thoughtful choices about your holiday waste. Small efforts can make a big difference in keeping recyclable and compostable materials out of landfills. 

Amy Hartline is the recycling and education program coordinator for the Dalton-Whitfield Solid Waste Authority. Have a recycling question? Contact her at (706) 278-5001 or ahartline@dwswa.org.