Cognitive scientist Maria Kluziak and researcher Jack Bowater built a tool on the Omni Calculator platform that compares the carbon footprint of a real vs. a plastic Christmas tree. The tool also considers how much you could reduce your footprint depending on the disposal method or by building zero-waste trees using everyday items, such as books.
The Christmas Tree Footprint Calculator is a free tool that shows the carbon footprint incurred from buying a natural tree versus an artificial one. It considers the tree's size, origin, and disposal method (did you know that many zoos take in Christmas trees to feed their elephants?). More than that, it even allows users to build zero-waste trees from household items (such as books, cans, paper, cardboard, or succulents). If a user opts for a zero-waste alternative, it shows the equivalent amount of CO2 saved.
For example, if a user decides to buy a natural 7ft tree, it would produce 21.024 kg of CO2. But if they opted for a book tree, the amount of CO2 they would save is equivalent to 2691 phones charged, 11 kg of food wasted, 2.38 gallons of gas consumed, 6.64 kg of waste sent to the landfill, and 50 miles driven by an average passenger vehicle.
As you can see, going out to buy another Christmas tree that won't survive past the holiday season entails some extra CO₂ emissions. Luckily, you can consider several zero-waste alternatives to make this Christmas more eco-friendly! The greenest you can get is by using the stuff you already own.
Maria Kluziak, author of the Christmas Tree Footprint Calculator
Maria Kluziak graduated from Jagiellonian University in Krakow with a master’s degree in Cognitive Science. She enjoys breaking down big scientific concepts into bite-sized pieces that anyone can understand, no matter their background. As an avid hiker and dog lover, she created the Christmas Tree Footprint Calculator to influence others to have a green Christmas.
About Omni Calculator: omnicalculator.com is an international tech company founded in 2014. It’s a platform consisting of over 3000 free Smart Calculators (calculators solving specific problems) organized into various categories, like finance, math, everyday life, and more. With an average of over 20 million pageviews each month, they have been featured in The Wall Street Journal, CBS, Forbes, Washington Post, and many more. Their team comprises more than 50 researchers from various fields – math enthusiasts and academics with hard-earned degrees working hand in hand with polymaths versed in multiple domains.