Green Christmas tips for holidays from conservation authority

By John Boldrick

There may not be any snow on the ground in Belleville, but that hasn’t stopped Quinte Conservation from gearing up for a green holiday season.

Earlier this month the association announced the return of both a program aimed at preserving the local conservation areas and tips for having a green Christmas.

Through it’s website, Quinte Conservation announced a series of seven tips on how people can make their holiday season as green and environmentally-friendly as possible.

This is the third year the association has done this, gathering information from staff and members of the conservation board.

“Every year at this time we like to gather some of our favourite tips for a green holiday season and then release them so that the public is aware of how they can have a greener holiday season,” said Jennifer May-Anderson, communications and marketing specialist for Quinte Conservation.

The tips include pointers such as putting your Christmas lights on a timer to save electricity and using public transportation or carpooling to help reduce the number of cars on the road and give the gift of clean air, according to Quinte Conservation’s website.

Also on the list is as wrapping gifts in reusable tote bags. If a gift needs batteries, the conservation recommends giving rechargeable batteries and a charger with the gift. The tips are just a few that were released by the environmental protection agency.

“I believe that any steps that we can take in order to help protect and preserve our environment is good and especially at this time of year when we’re dealing with lots of wrapping paper and lots of consumption; then it’s a good idea to take a look and make sure you’re doing it in the most responsible way possible,” she said.

All of the tips are designed to help cut down on the environmental impact of the holiday season according to May-Anderson.

“You can still have an enjoyable holiday season and you can also have an environmentally friendly holiday season as well,” she said.

This year also sees the return of the Adopt An Acre program to Quinte Conservation.

Adopt An Acre started in the early 1990’s and is a fundraising program in support of local conservation areas.

All donations go towards maintenance and also improving signage at selected conservation areas.

“People can go to our conservation areas and know that their donations are making trail maintenance and signage and so on possible,” said May-Anderson.

The areas selected this year are Vanderwater Park in Thomasburg, Sheffield Conservation Area in Kaladar, Macaulay Mountain in Picton and Massassauga Point.

After last years campaign raised $6,400, Quinte Conservation set a goal of adopting 300 acres of land. With about a week left for the program this year, around 180 acres having been adopted, totaling $3,600.

“We’re running a little behind where we were last year,” she said.

Although the numbers are down from the previous year, May-Anderson says that people still care about the program and support from the public is still present.

“The public is very supportive of the program. We always get lots of support from the community, our board members and our staff,” she said.

Donations can be made in person, over the phone or through Quinte Conservation’s web site. The amount of a donation is $20.