Halloween is one of my favorite holidays, and I do love a good scare! Do you want to know what scares me the most? It’s the amount of plastic waste generated by Halloween. Did you know it is possible to make some changes and have a waste-free Halloween?
Almost everything to do with Halloween involves some form of plastic. From the plastic bags used for treats to the polyester costumes, from plastic decorations like broomsticks and skeletons to the plates and cups used for celebrating.
The trash generated by throwaway Halloween costumes in the UK alone is equivalent to 83 million plastic bottles. That’s more than 2,000 tonnes of plastic waste. In America, around 12,500 tonnes of Halloween Costumes are sent to landfill each year.
You might not know, but most of these costumes are made of plastic. According to a survey completed by Hubbub and Fairyland Trust in 2019, 69% of Halloween costumes are made of polyester, a type of plastic similar to the kind of plastic used in drink bottles.
And that is just the costumes!
Making Halloween green is a good idea for us and the planet. Below we show you some fun ways to enjoy Halloween without creating a mountain of trash.
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Trick or Treat Bags
One step towards having a waste-free Halloween is to avoid plastic trick-or-treat bags. There are plenty of reusable options like backpacks, tote bags, or better still, make your own out of spooky old fabric. If you have to choose a disposable bag, then try and get recycled bags paper bags.
What about the treats? Here are some great ideas for treats that keep waste to a minimum.
- Give out fruit instead of candy. Mandarines or tangerines are a great option, and you can even put little jack-o-lantern faces on them.
- Buy candy in bulk.
- Choose candies in a tin or box that can be recycled or in aluminum foil like Hershey’s Kisses. Include a reminder card that aluminum can be recycled if rolled in a ball.
- Give away non-edible treats instead like crayons, pencils, chalk or other goodies. Choose items made from materials other than plastic and Halloween themed treats if you can.
- Why not include some instructions on how to dispose of the candy wrappers. Some people might not know that you can recycle your aluminum in a ball or that soft plastics like candy wrappers can be taken to drop off points for recycling.
Halloween Costumes
More than 30 million people in the UK dress up for Halloween every year. Costume expenditure in the US was just under 1.7 Billion back in 2017, and the trend is increasing. Now there is even a growing trend for pet costumes, adding to the number of costumes overall.
So many of these Halloween costumes are purchased, worn only once, and thrown away. Unfortunately, as mentioned above, the majority of these costumes are made from polyester plastic. These costumes are packaged in plastic too.
There are many ways you can help. You can buy a second-hand costume, rent a costume, or even make your own costume.
Hold a costume party swap – why not organize a get-together similar to a clothing swap party. You can get some friends or neighbors together to swap costumes. You could even make this an annual pre-Halloween event.
Buy Second hand – With so many costumes purchased, there must be a considerable number of second-hand costumes available. Check out your local thrift store or eBay for recycled costumes.
Rent – Why not look into renting a costume, so you don’t even need to worry about what to do with it after you wear it? You simply return it to the store.
Design your own costume – You could have a lot of fun designing and making your own costumes. Getting the kids involved is excellent too. It gets their creative energy flowing. You can use many items around the house like old clothes, cardboard, or other items. You can also use paper mache, or Eco-fi felt, a fabric made from 100% recycled plastic bottles.
Buy a Costume made from Recycled material – If you are not so creative or don’t have the time, then why not support someone who does. There are plenty of amazing creators on Etsy who make costumes from recycled or upcycled materials. Here are a few to give you a taste.
Recycle your old Costume – Once you have finished with your costume, you can go through the same options above. You might swap costumes or sell them second-hand. You can contact local schools, theatre groups, or other community groups who might be interested. If it has reached the end of its life, then check out our article on recycling clothes.
Waste-free Halloween Decorations
Another way to have a waste-free Halloween is to avoid single-use cheap throwaway decorations. It is better to look for well-made decorations that can be used year after year. Try to avoid glitter at all costs. Glitter is a form of plastic and can cause a lot of issues in the environment.
Why not decorate your house with natural materials. There are plenty of great ideas that you find on Pinterest that use pine cones, straw or hay bales, twigs and branches, leaves, or dried flowers. You can make many lovely decorations from leftover fabric or other items around the house.
Make your own pumpkin garland.
Take good care of things. Taking good care of your decorations can ensure that they will be in good condition for many years to come. This also helps reduce waste on Halloween.
- Clean your decorations, especially those that have been in the garden.
- Take the batteries out and recycle them if they are spent. Old batteries can leak and cause damage to the item.
- Put your decorations away carefully after use. Don’t leave them out in the weather for any longer than they should be as this can degrade the plastic.
When feeding your guests, look for biodegradable or compostable plates, and cups or better still, use plates and glasses instead. Don’t forget that you can recycle your aluminum foil and trays.
Carving Pumpkins Are Food Too
Food waste is a real issue in many countries. To have a truly waste-free Halloween make sure you dispose of your Halloween pumpkin thoughtfully. Eating them is the best way to make good use of pumpkins, but there are a few other options.
- Maybe not as tasty as the regular pumpkins, you can make soups or sauces out of the insides of your carving pumpkin.
- Feed the earth by composting your pumpkin.
- Feed the pumpkin to animals if you have them. Be sure to check with your vet first to make sure pumpkins are on your pet’s diet.
Learn What You Can and Cannot Recycle
Get to know your recycling so you can dispose of things correctly can help you truly have a waste-free Halloween. It can help you recognize materials that are difficult to recycle so you can avoid them in the future. Here are some things you can do to understand what you can and cannot recycle when it comes to Halloween trash.
- Learn how to recycle your soft plastics from plastic bags and candy wrappers.
- Understand the different types of plastics and which ones you can and cannot be recycled.
- Check the rules in your local area.
- Remove batteries before disposing of an item. Batteries contain toxic materials that can pollute the environment if sent to landfill.
- Learn where you can recycle your batteries or other e-waste items.
It’s also a good idea to donate costumes that are in good condition so they can be worn again. You can donate your costumes to any of these organizations or try your local thrift store.
- The Halloween Helpers – they provide gently used costumes to nonprofit agencies who give them to children who cannot afford a new costume.
- Theatre Development Fund costume collection – a nonprofit organization, aiming to make the art of theatre accessible to all. They even offer a rental service, with over 85,000 costumes you can’t go wrong.
- American Textile Recycling Service – donation service company collecting and distributing used clothing.
Some Ideas to Keep You Safe This Year
Finally, this year we want everyone to stay safe. There may be some restrictions on Halloween celebrations this year due to Covid 19. However, you can still enjoy the holiday. Here are a couple of ideas for making Halloween safe this year:
- Stick to outdoors for get-togethers if you can. For example, you could hold a pumpkin carving party in your front yard where you can social distance.
- Host a virtual party with your friends or neighbours, tell stories to scare each other.
- Plan to watch a scary movie at the same time as your friends and family. Stay connected over zoom or a phone call to be sure you hear all those screams.
- Create spooky spoon characters and add them to your local ‘Spoonville’ for everyone to enjoy
- Organize a drive-through event for your street.
- Leave treats out by your driveway, so trick or treaters don’t need to come up to your door. Leave some hand sanitizer next to the treats box.
Be sure to check the restrictions in your local area and follow them.
The Wrap
We hope you have found some valuable tips for how you can have a waste-free Halloween.
Have an incredibly spooky Halloween, everyone.
Sources
- Rebecca Smithers, 2019, Scariest thing about Halloween is plastic waste, say charities, www.theguardian.com
- Chris, 2019, The Scariest Thing About Halloween Is the Plastic (2019), www.fairylandtrust.org
- Halloween costume expenditure in the United States from 2010 to 2017, by type (in billion U.S. dollars)*
