The Christmas Naughty List

Australians use 150,000 kilometres of wrapping paper over the festive season – enough to wrap the world in paper almost four times!

Christmas is often a time for overindulgence - food, decorations and gifts. To keep as much as possible from landfill check out our naughty and nice list for recycling.

Naughty List

These can’t go into your usual recycling bin.

1. Plastic plates and plastic cutlery.
   Unfortunately, these cannot be recycled and need to go into your usual waste bin.
   To avoid this use your existing cutlery and crockery and then give it a wash, or even purchase paper plates that can be composted or put into your green waste bin.

2. glitter covered wrapping paper.
   It looks so nice, but the glitter means that teh paper cannot be recycled.
   Try donating this wrap to your local child care centre or school to use in crafts.

3. plastic christmas trees.
   Due to the size and structure of plastic trees these need to go to landfill.
   instead of binning the tree try donating to a local charity, or even sell on a local buy, swap & sell site.

4. tissue paper & napkins.
   these need to go into your compost or green waste bin. paper napkins and tissue paper are quite thin already and so the fibres are already too short to be recycled and used again.

5. unwanted gifts.
   Donate them to charity, or re-gift them - just remember who you got it from!
   

Nice List

Be sure to put these items into your recycling bin.

1. carboard boxes.
   boxes made from cardboard - even if they have sticky tape on them - can be recycled.

2. plastic cups and glasses (they must be clean!)
   The recycling machine will pick up the cups if theya re 3d in shape (not squashed flat) and are a rigid plastic.

3. moulded plastic packaging (like you get on toys).
   This is best to check with your local recycling center, but most will be able to recycle these.

4. aluminum baking trays and aluminium foil.
   Make sure there are no food scraps attached and it’s quite clean. roll or squash into a ball before placing in your recycling bin.

5. wrapping paper.
   all paper wrapping paper can go straight into your recycling bin.
   Cellophane, metallic wrap, palsti coated or glitter coated wrapping paper needs to go to landfill.
   COnsider a present sack instead of wrapping paper, or a reusable gift bag.

   
   other recycling options

   batteries.
   check with your local council, but many have battery recycling bins.
   Did you know that battery sales spike during the christmas season? almost 40% of annual battery sales occur during the christmas season!

   styrofoam
   check with your local council, but many have styrofoam recycling bins.

foil & plastic food wrappers
recycle these at your local woolworths or coles in their FREE redcycle bins.

Christmas is a time for friends and family so don't get disheartened if your low-waste journey gets a bit off track during the holidays.

Join an Unpackaged DIY workshop to learn even more ways to help reduce plastic and single-use items, whilst also saving yourself time and money.
Check out our current workshops available here