U.S interior designer Cheryl Terrace says people should check their shopping lists twice before buying a petroleum-based fake Christmas tree, mass-produced decorations or energy-draining Christmas lights. I agree.

People can also save even more energy with solar-powered Christmas lights, according to her - but I would argue don't buy them at all.

A 2010 Australian survey showed that 78.5% of Australians have received a present they didn’t want and 13.7% of people will throw away these unwanted, unused presents, going to landfill.

Natural ways for Christmas are better, like our old grandparents did. Don't add to Australia's waste pile this Christmas. Yes the economists won't like it if people buy less, but what about protecting the planet?

OK Scrouge. We don't expect presents from you. But I wonder if you own a car? I wonder if you have grid electricity or Solar?

Yes, that's right Josephus, we know he owns a computer and it's not solar or wind powered, even the signal he uses to transfer data requires energy. I'm afraid that until greenies live in caves, or under logs (not felled) walk every where, shiver in the winter because burring wood is bad for the environment (their words) then I take little notice of them because they are hypocrites.

Of cause the other widely over looked fact is that for every item manufactured, shipped, stacked on a self, sold, then disposed of creates jobs. If the greens have their way we will have a wonderful environment but no jobs.

I can't remember where I read it (was a few weeks ago), but I read an article that said over 30% of people had received a 'electrical gift' that ended up blowing their electricity bill so high they couldn't afford to run it.

I'm imagining they mean things like small pools, portable air conditioning, etc. So to go back to where you started- this is likely another reason that gifts end up in landfill.

Plus if you take into account the carbon footprint of to make these electrical appliances it adds up even more.

The only solution I can see - Buy people gift cards - At least that way they'll get gifts they actually want.

I'm not one to go along with a herd or hive mind mentality.
So in a slightly sarcastic manner I say go ahead and use all the power you want, and don't let anyone tell you not to.
Don't bother paying extra for that clean energy.
The dirty energy produced from coal works just as well and its cheaper; and so is the price of natural gas at the moment.

If governments want to manipulate the oil price for political gain (against Russia, Iran and other BRICS nations) why should we be the do-gooders and bother trying to save the environment?

Lets burn up as much of this cheap oil as we can, and teach them all a lesson for using the market as a political weapon.

Take the family on a road trip this Christmas, and burn oil off until your heart's content.
Tip some petrol on that campfire to get it started, or buy a boat or jetski for the family so you can burn off a little extra.

Human beings only change when change becomes necessary, so the sooner we run out of fossil fuels the sooner a greater need for developing renewable energy happens and becomes more financially viable.

The world is going to frack the hell out of shale oil first anyway and we'll all have fire coming out of our taps with our groundwater undrinkable, and we'll probably keep on digging up coal (and burning timber and heating oil or kerosene to keep us warm until all the forests are gone and fossil fuels depleted) and there isn't any left.

This is inevitable so why care anyway?
Also CO2 is greening the planet.

People should however go back to a simpler, more homely way of life and use real Christmas trees, not the plastic ones.

But the question arises (to the greenies) about whether or not cutting trees down for Christmas really helps the planet any more than using petroleum based plastic trees?

In this context, plastic Christmas trees might actually help the environment by saving the real trees from being cut down.

Armchair Critic,

Every item made for humans requires a resource from the natural world - and toxic plastic Christmas trees are not part of the solution.

"Artificial trees are manufactured using a polyvinyl chloride (or PVC), which is a petroleum-derived plastic. The raw material for fake Christmas trees is both non-renewable and polluting. Furthermore, PVC production results in the unhealthy emission of a number of carcinogens, such as dioxin, ethylene dichloride and vinyl chloride.

Additionally, in order to make the PVC needles on artificial trees more malleable, the manufacturers use lead and other additives that have been linked to liver, kidney, neurological, and reproductive system damage in lab studies on animals. The Children’s Health Environmental Coalition warns fake trees "may shed lead-laced dust, which may cover branches or shower gifts and the floor below the tree." We need more Christmas tree farms in Australia.

http://www.science20.com/science_motherhood/great_debate_real_vs_artificial_christmas_trees

An ABC television series, showing remote Australian islands (Lord Howe Island) showed insides of remote species of birds (the only type in the world) dying because of the consumption of human made plastics in the seas surrounding Australia. Not a good Christmas present for them is it?

I think that if you've already bought a christmas tree, then you should get the most use out of it. Buying real ones instead of reusing the one that you have in storage is actually much more detrimental than not. In any case, the ones that have been produced, have been produced. What are you going to do about it besides demand that they shut down production plants?