Once the gifts have been opened and the cookies eaten, there are a few important items you'll want to make sure you get rid of the right way. Here are five things to recycle:
1 Live Christmas trees. Christmas trees are naturally biodegradable and beneficial for the environment. If you bought a tree with roots, plant it in your backyard or donate it to a local school, park or cemetery for planting. For trees without roots, search Earth911.com for "Christmas Tree" to check for recyclers in your area. Otherwise, if you have a large backyard, let the tree decompose naturally in an out-of-the-way location while it continues to provide a natural habitat for birds.
2Used electronics. Chances are some of those new holiday gifts will be replacing older models. Instead of letting them collect dust, recycle or donate them. Many online trade-in websites can help you with this task, and may even pay you for the working ones. Some stores collect electronics for recycling. If you'd rather skip the hassle of shipping and handling, bring used electronics to a local Goodwill collection center, where the electronics will be refurbished or recycled.
3Packaging materials. Cardboard gift boxes, shipping boxes and other packaging material can be recycled along with other paper recyclables. If the gift box is still in usable condition, save it to reuse. Packaging materials like foam peanuts are not recyclable but can be taken back to shipping stores to be reused.
4Holiday lights. If your incandescent holiday lights no longer work, recycle them. Large retailers offer holiday light trade-in or recycling programs as an incentive to upgrade to LED lights. HolidayLEDS.com will accept your broken or no- longer-wanted incandescent lights and they'll even give you credit toward your next purchase of LED lights.
5Greeting cards. For decades, St. Jude's Ranch for Children in Boulder City, Nev., has been collecting Christmas cards that they repurpose and resell to raise funds for the organization's mission. Add a new tradition to the end of your holiday season by donating your stack of holiday cards to a good cause. Only the fronts of cards are needed and they should be clear of writing or other marks on the back of the front flap.
Wrapping paper is the glaring item missing from this list. Not all wraps are recyclable. Many are laminated or mixed with other nonrecyclable materials like foil, glitter or plastic. You're better off choosing recyclable items or ones that can be used again. Gift bags, sheets of paper from magazines or newspapers, sheet music or even colorful scarves make greener choices for gift wrap.
