Halloween is scary enough, but in case you wanted to be spooked some more, here are 5 facts about Halloween waste and how you can reduce yours…

1. Pumpkins

Let’s start with the bright, orange elephant in the room—pumpkins. The US Department of Energy estimates that 1.3 billion pounds of pumpkins are thrown out after Halloween each year.

Why should this scare you?

When pumpkins are thrown out, they end up tightly packed under piles of trash in landfills, which causes them to decompose without oxygen. When this happens, methane is released as a byproduct of anaerobic decomposition. As further explained in the article, Methane & The Environment, methane is a more potent greenhouse warming gas than carbon dioxide. In fact, compared to other greenhouse gases, like carbon dioxide and water vapor, methane is 28 times more effective at trapping heat over a 100 year time frame, which makes it anywhere from 25-100 times more destructive than CO2 over a couple of decades. So 1.3 billion pounds of pumpkins are actually quite frightening.

Rather than chucking your pumpkin into the trash after Halloween, there are plenty of ways to get more use out of your jack-o-lantern and cut down on landfill waste. Check out this article for a list of possibilities!

2. Plastic Trick-or-Treat Bags

Americans use 100 billion plastic bags every year, and single-use trick-or-treat bags only add to the problem. If you are going to trick-or-treat in your area this year, ditch the plastic bag and opt for something reusable, like a pillowcase, backpack, or tote bag!

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3. Costumes

On average, Americans buy $3.4 billion worth of costumes every year. And let’s be honest, most people just end up throwing their costumes out after one use. In fact, in the UK, an estimated 2,000 tonnes of plastic waste is generated from throwaway Halloween costumes. Talk about trashy. Before buying something new, take a look in your closet to see if you can make a costume out of the things that you already own. Otherwise, you may be able to find just what you’re looking for at a local secondhand shop or on Poshmark or Etsy. Not only will you save waste, but you’ll save money this way too! Need last minute Zero Waste costume? Check out this article for 12 ideas! And if you’re going to use glitter with your costume, opt for a compostable, plastic free one that won’t pollute the environment!

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4. Candy Wrappers

The average trick-or-treater generates 1 pound of trash, and most of that is plastic candy wrappers. Flimsy plastic like this isn’t typically recycled because the broken down material has little to no value on the recycled materials market. Instead, consider giving out multi-use items that won’t have to live in a landfill graveyard. Reusable straws, crayons, pencils, fruit, candy packaged in cardboard boxes, or bulk candy (which can be wrapped in brown paper bags or in scrap fabric, and tied closed using twine) are all are great low waste options!

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Post candy coma, a good way to handle wrapping waste is with the Candy and Snack Wrapper Zero Waste Box from TerraCycle. You can fill up with all of your wrappers and then send back to TerraCycle to be recycled into playgrounds, park benches, and more!

5. Disposable decorations

Who has seen piles of decorations outside of a garbage bin after a holiday? Between Halloween and New Year’s, Americans throw away 25% more trash during the holiday season. This amounts to an extra 25 million tons of garbage, and decorations account for a lot of this. Stick to natural materials, like tree branches, dried flowers, pumpkins, and gourds, which can be composted afterward. Sage sticks, incenses, crystals, and natural candles are also great low waste decoration options that can be kept and reused long after the 31st. Throwing a party? An easy trick is to throw white sheets over all of the furniture, and voila, instant haunted house vibes. You can also try to get crafty with items that you already own, or with things that you would have otherwise thrown away. For example, using empty red wine bottles as candlestick holders can give off a perfect eerie glow. Or try making little ghosts out of reusable cloths and twine. Or check out this tutorial for a DIY egg carton bat!

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How are you avoiding trash this Halloween? I’d love to know in the comments!