Real vs. Fake Christmas Trees: Which is better for the Environment?
Source: https://onetreeplanted.org/blogs/stories/real-vs-artificial-christmas-trees
Author: Meaghan Weeden
Artificial trees can last many years if well cared for, which seems to make them the obvious sustainable choice, but they do have drawbacks. Because most are made with plastic and metal materials, they take a lot of resources to create - and their plastic components will exist for thousands of years, polluting our oceans and filling the bellies of sea turtles. Often produced and shipped from China, they also have a hefty carbon footprint - to the tune of up to 88lbs of CO2 per artificial tree, which is over 10X higher than that of a sustainably grown, properly recycled real Christmas tree. In fact, you would have to keep your fake Christmas tree for at least 10 years for it to have the same carbon impact as using a real tree each year - and that isn’t considering the environmental damage artificial trees cause as they slowly break down in a landfill. And let's be real: the likelihood of them lasting 10 years before breaking or getting thrown out is pretty low. Yes, real Christmas trees are more eco-friendly and a better choice for the environment. It may feel counter-intuitive, but it's much more sustainable to cut down a real tree each year. That’s because most small-scale Christmas tree farms are inherently sustainable, leaving certain sections open for harvesting every year, while keeping other areas closed to give younger trees a chance to grow.