Plastic, Pollution And Pumpkin Pandemonium: Halloween’s Hasty Environmental Havoc
Eerie Origins: Candy Chaos In A Climate Crisis
Halloween, now synonymous with costume parties, plastic pumpkins and sugar binges, began life as something rather more sombre.
The festival’s origins can be traced to the ancient Celtic celebration of Samhain (pronounced “sow-in“), a Gaelic term signifying the “end of summer.” This period was believed to mark a liminal phase when the boundary between the living and the dead grew indistinct.
On the night of 31st October, villagers lit bonfires and donned animal hides to ward off wandering spirits.
Celts believed the boundary between the worlds of the living and the dead became blurred. On this October night, they celebrated Samhain, when it was believed that the ghosts of the dead returned to Earth.
But, as the Catholic Church has a habit of doing, Samhain was repurposed into “All Hallows’ Eve,” the precursor to All Saints’ Day. “Hallowed“, meaning holy or sanctified, is usually contracted to the more familiar word we know today.
Today, Halloween is celebrated in over 20 countries. In the U.S., it’s a $US 10 billion industry.
In Japan, costumed parades turn Shibuya into a cosplay carnival.
Now, across the plastic-filled Pacific in Mexico, Halloween overlaps with the more dignified Día de los Muertos – the “day of the dead”.
The UK and Australia aren’t immune to the Halloween spell either, with millions joining in on the spooky fun.
But beneath the party lies a hidden, more sinister truth.
Halloween’s environmental footprint is more than just ghastly.
Costume Catastrophe: Fast Fashion’s Frightening Footprint
Perhaps the most terrifying aspect of Halloween isn’t the fake blood or inflatable skeletons—it’s the costumes.
Every year, millions of people around the globe buy cheap, disposable costumes, most of which are made from non-recyclable plastic.
According to 2030 Builders, 83% of Halloween costumes contain plastic, including polyester, which is as biodegradable as a rock star’s ego.
In the UK, 7 million costumes are binned after just one night, contributing to around 2,000 tonnes of plastic waste, equivalent to 83 million plastic bottles.
In Australia, Halloween contributes 1.6 million kg of plastic waste annually, and in the U.S., where everything is bigger, including the waste problem.
Nearly 80 million costumes are purchased yearly, many of which end up in landfill sites.
And it’s not just the plastic. As The Guardian reports, these costumes are often treated with toxic chemicals like Bisphenol-A (BPA) and phthalates—substances known to disrupt hormones.
(For more information on this, read my blog on plastic waste here).
So, not only are we trashing the planet, but we’re also parading around in endocrine-disrupting attire. All this for a few hours of trick-or-treating?
In the long run, you’re only tricking yourself regarding your thyroid gland, gonadal function and various other organ systems.
The irony is thicker than the fake cobwebs lining every supermarket.
Candy Carnage: The Wasteful Sweet Scene
What would Halloween be without sweets? Unfortunately, the environmental cost of this sugar rush is enough to give you a toothache.
Every year, billions of individually wrapped chocolates, lollipops and chewy delights are handed out to eager trick-or-treaters. But here’s the bitter aftertaste: the vast majority of these wrappers are not recyclable.
In the U.S., Halloween contributes to over 600 million pounds of candy waste annually, with those wrappers piling up in landfills.
According to Site Solutions, roughly 250 tonnes of plastic waste in the UK comes from Halloween sweets alone.
Not to be outdone, Australians generate over 300 tonnes of Halloween-related plastic waste, mostly from sweets and decorations.
While trick-or-treaters gleefully fill their plastic pumpkin buckets, they’re also unwittingly contributing to a massive waste crisis.
Pervasive Pumpkins: From Decorations to Dumpsters
Pumpkins, the festive gourds that adorn every doorstep and Instagram and TikTok feed during Halloween, have their own horrifying backstory.
In the UK, around 15 million pumpkins are bought each Halloween, most of which are carved into lanterns and then promptly tossed into the bin.
According to Site Solutions, a staggering 18,000 tonnes of edible pumpkin flesh are wasted annually in Britain. That’s enough to make pumpkin soup for the entire population, which currently stands at nearly 70 million.
Australia isn’t far behind, with around 5 million pumpkins purchased for Halloween, many of which end up in landfills. The U.S., naturally, is the biggest offender, with 680 million kgs of pumpkins produced annually—most of which are discarded after the spooky season.
Once in landfills, these pumpkins decompose and release methane (CH4), a greenhouse gas 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide (CO2).
So much for those charming Jack-o’-lanterns. It turns out they’re an environmental hazard in disguise.
Spooktacular? No.
Frightening Footprints: Halloween’s Carbon Catastrophe
Carbon emissions are the other skeleton in Halloween’s closet. From manufacturing plastic decorations and polyester costumes to the energy used to light up every inflatable ghost and pumpkin, Halloween has a carbon footprint worthy of yet another horror film.
As EcoStyles further describes, the average Halloween celebration, complete with costumes, sweets and decorations, creates around 4.5 kg of CO2 emissions per person.
In the UK, Halloween’s carbon footprint totals an estimated 2,000 tonnes of CO2 each year, with Australians contributing over 1,200 tonnes of CO2 through costume manufacturing and transportation.
And in the U.S., the home of excessive everything, Halloween’s total carbon footprint releases a staggering 4 million tonnes of CO2. That is roughly the equivalent of 850,000 cars driving for a year.
Haunting Solutions: How to Have a Sustainable Halloween
The good news? There are ways to make Halloween a little less horrifying for the planet. First off, ditch the fast-fashion costumes. Get creative with your wardrobe or upcycle old clothes.
According to EcoStyles, reusing costumes can reduce your Halloween carbon footprint by up to 2.5 kg of CO2 per outfit.
If you must buy new, opt for something made from natural materials like cotton or wool—better yet, check out charity shops for second-hand finds.
(Read more about how the clothing industry contributes to the climate catastrophe on my blog here).
When it comes to decorations, skip the plastic and go for natural or reusable alternatives.
Carve a pumpkin, but make sure you compost it afterwards. Or better yet, eat it!
For sweets, look for plastic-free options or give out recycled toys instead. If you must indulge in the sugary stuff, opt for larger, share-sized bags to reduce wrapper waste.
Alternatively, when eager kids knock at your door, why not hand them chewable toothbrushes?
Now, that’s a Halloween trick that’s spookily good for the environment and the perplexed looks you receive on their faces may be more amusing than any Halloween mask.
So Why Not Go Green For “HallowClean”? Or Will It Be “Trash Or Treat?”
One night of ghostly glee will result in millions of tonnes of plastic waste, carbon emissions and discarded pumpkins. It’s enough to make you wonder: Is Halloween really worth the environmental havoc it wreaks?
Or have we, in our quest for spooky spectacle, become the true monsters for just one evening?
Perhaps the real question is: what are we willing to sacrifice for a fleeting moment of fright and at what cost to the world we all inhabit?
Thoughts and comments are welcome below.
[Feel the love and eco-guilt by reading my separate blog here on how Valentine’s Day is also slowly wreaking havoc for Planet Earth. Just click on the heart ——> 💔]
Have a Green, Clean Hallowe'en
About the author
Dr Surrinder Singh is a medical doctor, blogger and freelance writer. He is passionate about healthcare, medicine and education and works professionally with B2B and B2C clients.
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