Real vs. Artificial: What is the Most Sustainable Type of Christmas Tree?
What is the most environmentally friendly choice: a real or an artificial Christmas tree? Or is there an even more sustainable festive option?
Christmas trees are a European tradition stretching back hundreds of years. But in this century, questions have arisen about whether this tradition is truly sustainable. Cutting down trees is bad, right? And using artificial trees can surely not be good for the environment? So what’s the answer?
For many years, the chopping down of real Christmas trees was considered detrimental to the environment. But the trees used for Christmas – typically an evergreen conifer, such as a fir, spruce or pine tree – are usually sustainable crops. Typically, for every tree harvested for Christmas, one or more will be planted in its place.
Today, the artificial tree is most likely to be painted as the bad guy. It is mostly made from a plastic called PVC that creates emissions in its manufacture and, unlike a real tree, is not biodegradable. There is also the cardboard required for packaging and the emissions generated as they are shipped across the globe from factory to your home.
The carbon footprint of a Christmas tree
According to the?Carbon Trust, artificial trees also have a higher carbon footprint. It estimates a two-meter-tall artificial tree produces about 40kg of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e), while a similar sized real Christmas tree, with no roots, creates 3.5kg CO2e – more than 10 times less.
But there’s a catch. You must dispose of the real tree by burning it on a bonfire or by shredding and spreading it over the garden. If the real tree ends up in landfill, its carbon footprint jumps to?16kg CO2e?as it will decompose anaerobically and produce methane gas, which around?30 times more potent?as a greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide.
Artificial trees are not all bad. They are often cheaper and are flame retardant, which is important for trees used in public places. And, if you have an artificial tree and re-use it for at least 10 Christmases, then the carbon footprint over its lifetime will likely be lower than that of a real tree.
Are potted trees the most sustainable Christmas tree?
There is an alternative: potted trees, which can be replanted after the festive season and re-used year-after-year.
“The best thing you can do at Christmas is to keep your tree alive and breathing as it will naturally absorb CO2 and release oxygen. So potted trees are the most sustainable option, but they need looking after,” says Anja-Lea Fischer, Group Head Environmental Performance at Zurich Insurance Group.