Go Halloween Green

Halloween is just around the corner and it’s rather spooky to think of all the waste this great tradition will produce when people all over the world set out to find treats, goblins, and any excuse to play Michael Jackson’s Thriller - repeatedly.

Don’t get us wrong, the gang at My Green Birmingham.com is looking forward to celebrating All Hallows Eve, we just think like everything else there is an opportunity to make even the scariest holiday of the year green! So we thought we would put together a few tips to help you have an Eco-Halloween.  Check out the ideas below to find ways to save cash and go Halloween Green.

Do-It-Yourself: Make your costume at home. With the economy being scarier than any horror movie on your TV screen, this may not be such a far-fetched idea this year. Take to your closets to see what kind of homemade creature you can piece together. Another idea is to send around a few email messages to friends and co-workers to ask if anyone would like to swap costumes with you. After all, no one wants wear the same costume twice, right?

Chances are you will find someone willing to trade with you, which means money saved and the chance to recycle, reuse, and reduce! (This is an especially great idea for kids. Make it fun by having a pre-Halloween costume party where children can wear their old costumes and leave with new ones!)

Shop Local: Remember to shop fair trade and organic when buying treats. There is a growing variety of eco-friendly candy—from organic chocolate to organic lollipops—available online and from local organic groceries, health food stores, or consumer cooperatives.

While these earth and body friendly treats aren’t easy to find in all stores, if you do your homework you can locate them on-line (try YummyEarth.com) or in stores like Whole Foods Market. Think outside the box as well and support those Mom and Pop stands selling locally grown and made candy apples, homemade chocolates, and more.  Also remember to choose treats that use little or no packaging that is produced using fossil fuels and cannot be recycled.

Walk, Don’t Drive: The benefits of walking instead of driving around neighborhoods to collect candy with your tricksters are obvious. Trick or treat in surrounding neighborhoods and put some mileage on that homemade costume by leaving the car parked. However, if driving is a must, insist on carpooling with friends and neighbors.

Take A Tote, Ditch the Pail: Forgo buying a molded plastic pail for your little ones to gather treats with and opt for a reusable tote bag or even a pillowcase.  The festive plastic pails that are rather popular with the Halloween holiday are very hard to recycle because of the grade of plastic they are made out of, and they certainly don’t biodegrade if thrown away.  To ease your child’s disappointment of not toting around this Halloween classic, sacrifice a pillowcase and have your ghoul or goblin decorate it with Halloween art. You can use items from around the house that would otherwise be discarded for some bewitching craftwork.

Make Pumpkin Pie (Or Compost): If you don’t already compost, Halloween is a great time to start. You can add post-Halloween jack-o-lanterns to your compost bin, along with fallen leaves, food scraps, and other organic, biodegradable yard and household waste.

Compost creates excellent soil for your garden. You might even use the compost from your backyard bin to help grow the pumpkins that will become next year’s jack-o-lanterns and pumpkin pies!

Look Scary, Do Good: The chance to go door to door also gives you the opportunity to promote a good cause to folks you would probably otherwise not interact with. Remember there are great organizations like UNICEF and Sight Night to support, and even your local food bank. Grab a wagon and ask your candy givers to donate a canned good to be taken to an area food bank. Visit alfoodbanks.org to find a food bank near you.