Christmas is a great time for presents and celebrations, but before you head out to join the seasonal shopping spree, keep in mind the likely environmental effects of your shopping and celebrations.

Reducing your waste by shopping wisely and recycling helps save our environment. Christchurch people throw away 230,000 tonnes of rubbish a year — about 650kg per person, or 40 bus loads of rubbish a year. Amazingly, 65 per cent of that material could have been recycled or composted.

Christchurch City Council studies show that about 25% of what’s in an average Council black rubbish bag is paper, yet all you have to do with magazines, wrapping paper (excluding foil wrap) or junk mail circulars is keep them flat and clean, and put them in a plastic shopping bag on top of your recycling crate for collection.

Fold up your paper for recycling, re-use packaging for children’s craftwork or even better, shop wisely. Some helpful tips for shopping are:

• Choose products with less packaging e.g. refills, concentrates or buy bulk
• Avoid using disposable items; buy durable repairable products
• Choose recyclable products or packaging
• Look for eco-labels like the environmental choice logo with the tick
• Buy pre-loved items from second-hand or opportunity shops, garage sales or local markets or the SuperShed
• Take your own carry bag shopping
• Say “No thanks” to plastic carry bags.

Shopping wisely saves energy, saves resources and reduces the impact on landfills. If your normal rubbish and recycling collection day is Christmas Day or New Year’s Day place your rubbish bag or recycling crate out on the following Saturday for collection. All other rubbish collection days continue as normal.

Those heading away on holiday or cleaning up after a party can take up to three black Council rubbish bags and recycling, free, to any refuse station.

All refuse stations are open in the Christmas-New Year period during the usual summer hours of 7am to 4.30pm weekdays and 8.30am to 5pm weekends except Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day, when all refuse stations are closed.