By Alixandra Gould

From purchasing a brand new costume, and stocking up on candy handouts, to decorating your home, your carbon footprint can get, well, a bit scary. “Halloween is one of the holidays where people go overboard,” says President of Earth Day Canada Jed Goldberg.

If you want to reduce your impact this October 31st, the best option is to “do it yourself.”

“A lot of people take their kids to the store and buy them a costume, but that’s not necessary,” continues Goldberg.

To assemble a low-impact costume start with stuff lying around your house, and fill in the gaps by rummaging at your local second hand store. Another option is to try a costume swap like the one organized by SwapSity. The next swap is Oct 23rd—visit SwapSity.ca for details.  You might just find that perfect outfit, and get rid of last year’s disguise without burying it in a landfill.

Swappers get the goods at Green Venture

Decorations can also have a huge environmental impact. Corey Colwell-Lipson, Founder and Director of the Seattle-based non-profit organization Green Halloween, says it’s about thinking outside the box.

“You can choose more edible pumpkins, and [save the inside] for cooking later,” she advises.

Millions of pumpkins end up releasing methane gases in landfills across North America every year, contributing to global warming, so it’s best to use every last bit.

Curb your waste by putting your pumpkin on the curb so the City of Toronto can compost it for you.

Colwell-Lipson adds it’s not just about the health of the planet, but the health of families too.

Laboratory tests commissioned by the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics found low levels of lead in 100 percent of 10 popular children’s face paints.  Even with the “non-toxic” label, many face paints still have an array of dangerous chemicals including BHA, formaldehyde, kohl (from lead), phthalates, and parabens, according to the Environmental Working Group.

“Our skin absorbs everything,” says Colwell-Lipson. “Anything we put on our skin we should also be comfortable with putting in our mouths.” DIY face paint recipes on Green Halloween’s blog recommend diaper cream and organic food colouring.

And, what else are they putting in their mouths—heaping bags of candy. “The bags of junk are not appreciated by the parents, not healthy for the kids, and certainly not good for the environment,” says Goldberg. This year, Goldberg suggests giving a smaller handful to trick-or-treaters then, if there are leftovers, take them out of the wrappers and compost them.

To keep sugar filled treats out of their bags all together, there’s a growing trend called “reverse trick-or-treating.” Promoted by globalexchange.org, an international organization dedicated to human, economic and environmental justice, reverse trick-or-treating involves going door-to-door handing out fair trade chocolate and information on fair trade practices.

For a green Halloween, be creative, reuse as much as you can, and do it yourself.

Sources:

1. http://www.meetup.com/GTA-Green-Swap-Meet/
2. http://www.ewg.org/kid-safe-chemicals-act-blog/2009/10/trick-or-treat-how-about-lead-instead/
3. http://greenhalloween.org/blog/?p=235

Alixandra Gould is a freelance writer living and working in Toronto.

candy, carbon footprint, costumes, environment, fall, green, green halloween, halloween, october, treats