Christmas leads to average Briton’s greenhouse gas emissions soaring by 23 times
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Emissions generated by all the travel, gifts, energy, decorations, food, drink and waste associated with Christmas Day amount to 513kg of CO2 equivalent (CO2e) per person - compared to 22kg a day normally. Christmas Day bonanzas of gift giving, festive feasts and wrapping paper cause the average Briton’s greenhouse gas emissions to spike by 23 times.
![[Christmas presents were the biggest driver of a spike in emissions in the festive period]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2024/12/21/22/newFile-2.jpg)
The paper’s analysis lays bare the climate impact of Christmas festivities, celebrated by hundreds of millions of people in the wealthiest parts of the world. And the analysis gives ammunition to critics who have long argued the festive season has been hijacked by major corporations to promote mass consumption.
![[Santa Claus is also known as Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Father Christmas, Kris Kringle, or Santa]](https://static.independent.co.uk/s3fs-public/thumbnails/image/2018/12/15/14/Santa-Run.jpg)
Melanie Nazareth from Christian Climate Action told the paper: “We have been deliberately sold a vision of Christmas that is based on material consumption. We are constantly bombarded by advertising and media that tells us that if we aren’t spending money on things, we are not doing Christmas properly. This is destroying the whole meaning of Christmas as well as destroying the planet.
“Christmas is a celebration of love and if we love people, if we care about the baby born today, the greatest gift we can give them is a livable planet. “This is not just about our individual gift-giving, although we all have a responsibility to take action where we can. Retailers and manufacturers have the power to create change and they need to think beyond making bigger profits to think about their impact on the planet.”.
