For Immediate Release: Monday, November 16, 2020
Much of the holiday season will be different this year, including gift giving. Montgomery County’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and partners are encouraging people to gift greener this holiday season by supporting local businesses and reducing their carbon footprint with the annual “Gift Outside the Box” campaign.
For the fourth consecutive year, the Gift Outside the Box campaign brings together County agencies and community organizations to promote environmentally friendly gift giving. The holiday campaign again will focus on five areas:
“The difficult times created by this pandemic gives us an opportunity to think about supporting our local businesses as a way to give greener this holiday season,” said DEP Director Adam Ortiz. “DEP and our partners are challenging residents to reduce waste by thinking differently about how they shop for and give gifts. Together, we can reduce waste, save energy and build a strong local economy.”
As a result of the COVID-19 health, DEP will host a series of new virtual events to highlight ways residents can gift outside the box this holiday season.
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, household waste in the U.S. increases an average of 25 percent between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day. Wrapping paper, decorations, packaging and leftover food (and sometimes even gifts) often do not last long and end up in the waste stream.
More information about the most sustainable ways to give for the holidays is available at the Gift Outside the Box website at https://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/dep/gift-greener.html.
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