Letter: The three Rs: Reduce, Re-use and Recycle

In the UK at Christmas we spend over £70 billion pounds, nearly £700 per household, including £200 on food and drink and £100 on parties. We consume two million turkeys and 74 million mince pies.

Households create 30% more waste with 300,000 tonnes of cardboard packaging. One billion cards end up in the rubbish bin along with 227,000 miles of wrapping paper and six million Christmas trees. Here are 10 things you can do to help:

1. Reuse or recycle your wrapping paper

2. Reduce travelling and communicate by Skype or phone

3. Lower the thermostat by one degree and save 10% on your gas bill

4. Try not to buy party food in plastic containers

5. Use real plates, knives and forks, not disposable ones

6. Don’t cook too much food and freeze leftovers rather than throwing them away

7. Buy produce and gifts produced locally to reduce the product mileage and keep money local

8. Give gifts such as charity support, ie having a tree planted in the person’s name

9. Recycle Christmas cards and buy ones made of recycled card

10. In short, the three Rs ‘Reduce, Re-use, Recycle’

Happy Christmas everyone.

Cllr Mark Vesey

Scarborough and

Whitby Green Party

Alexandra Park

Scarborough