‘Tis the Season… of Stuff (Let’s Handle It Better)
The holidays bring twinkling lights, full plates, and—let’s be honest—a lot more waste. From gift wrap and packaging to food scraps and decorations, Christmas can generate more trash than any other time of year. With a few thoughtful choices, Alachua County residents can reduce holiday trash, recycle right, and help protect local workers, waterways, and neighborhoods.
Gift Wrapping: What to Reuse, Recycle, or Trash
It’s giving…responsible wrapper. Before tearing into a new roll of wrapping paper, take a look at what’s already on hand. Gift bags, boxes, fabric, scarves, and kraft paper can be reused year after year. If paper wrapping is a must, follow the Holiday Packaging Disposal Guide. Shiny, metallic, or glittery wrapping paper belongs in the trash. Plain, non-shiny paper may be recyclable or compostable. Natural accents such as twine, pine sprigs, or dried oranges add charm without creating waste. And, of course, saving ribbons and bows to use again is always in style.
Recycling Holiday Cards
Holiday cards without glitter, foil, or decorative embellishments can go in the recycling bin. Cards with sparkles or shiny coatings should be placed in the trash.
How to Recycle Your Christmas Tree in Alachua County
Real trees can be placed curbside as yard waste. Trees must be bare naked with no lights or decorations and cut down into 5-foot sections. You can also drop them off at any of the 5 Rural Collection Centers in the yard waste containers.
📍 North Central: 10714 N. State Rd. 121
📍 High Springs: 16929 NW Hwy. 441
📍 Archer: 19401 SW Archer Rd.
📍 Phifer Solid Waste: 11700 SW Hawthorne Rd.
📍 Fairbanks Solid Waste: 9920 NE Waldo Rd.
All I Want for Christmas is…Batteries
From singing toys to glowing gadgets, the holidays run on batteries. Many popular holiday gifts contain lithium-ion batteries, including phones, toys, power tools, scooters, e-bikes, and wearable tech. These batteries should never go in the trash or recycling bin. They can short-circuit, overheat, and ignite, causing dangerous fires that threaten workers, neighborhoods, and waste facilities. Used batteries of any kind should be taken to one of the six Household Hazardous Waste Collection Centers for proper disposal.
A More Sustainable Season Starts at Home
Here are a few additional ways to lighten your environmental footprint this holiday season:
Ditch the Disposables
Choose real plates, cloth napkins, and reusable cutlery instead of single-use plastic or paper items. Ask guests to bring their own containers for leftovers or provide reusable ones they can take home.
Compost Your Leftovers
Vegetable scraps, peels, coffee grounds, and many food leftovers can be composted instead of thrown away, returning valuable nutrients to the soil.
Recycle Right!
Set up designated bins for recycling and compost to make sorting easy for everyone. Remember, the orange bin is for recycling paper and cardboard; and blue is plastic, glass, cans, etc.
Can the (Aluminum) Pan!
Remember, aluminum roasting pans and pie tins may look recyclable, but they are not accepted in curbside recycling programs. They’re often contaminated with food and grease, too thin to process properly, and can burn up before reaching recycling temperatures. Putting them in the recycling bin causes contamination and makes it harder to recycle items that are accepted, like aluminum and steel cans. Wash and reuse aluminum pans, but when pans can no longer be reused, place them in the trash—not the recycling bin.
More Bang, Less Junk in 2026!
Did you know fireworks are considered an energetic hazardous waste? Energetic hazardous waste or “waste explosives” include waste that has the potential to detonate such as munitions, consumer fireworks, hobby rockets, flares and even airbag propellants. These items may be hazardous to human health and the environment due to their ignitability, toxicity and/or reactive nature. If you plan to set off your own fireworks this New Year’s Eve, please make sure to bring any damaged or undetonated fireworks to the Alachua County Household Hazardous Waste Collection Center located at 5125 NE 63rd Ave. Used fireworks should be soaked in water overnight, placed in a plastic bag, and put in the trash for regular collection. Cleaning up spent fireworks, disposing of debris properly, and keeping litter out of drains helps protect local wildlife, water quality, and our neighborhoods as we welcome 2026.
This holiday season, a little thought goes a long way. Let’s celebrate, reduce waste, and recycle right—together.