Spooky season is here, along with all the fun fall traditions like haunted houses, carving pumpkins, costume contests, and trick-or-treating. While we are busy enjoying the ghostly activities, it’s easy to forget that Halloween can create a lot of waste. Candy wrappers, party cups, and decorations often pile up, and overflowing trash cans can spill into the streets, storm drains, and even the ocean. That’s enough to dampen any Halloween spirit.
Here are some simple tricks to keep your treats from turning into trashy nightmares:
Keep an Extra Halloween Bag in the Car
Snacking on candy while trick-or-treating is inevitable, which means sticky wrappers with no trash can in sight. Keep an extra bag or small container in the car to hold the waste and make sure to dispose of it properly when you get home. It keeps the car clean and keeps litter from flying around.
Bring your Own Trash Bags
Heading out to a Halloween party, fall fair, or a haunted maze? Trash cans can be limited, filled to the brim, or not available at all. Going into fang-tastic activities with a plan for how you’ll pack out your trash, such as being prepared with your own small trash bag, makes it easier to clean up after yourself and your family.
Watch Out for Windy Nights
With the fall breeze, lightweight items like napkins, plastic packaging, and wrappers can easily blow away. Before leaving a Halloween get-together, scan the area for trash, whether it is yours or not, to prevent it from blowing into our storm drain system and local waterways. Little gestures like these keep the ocean and waterways free of trash.
Make Greener Halloween Choices
A few swaps can make a big difference:
- Use a reusable trick-or-treating bag
- Reuse or swap an old Halloween costume with a friend instead of buying a new one every year.
Halloween should be about fun, not waste. Whether you are trick-or-treating in your neighborhood or celebrating at a Halloween festival, a little effort helps keep our parks, streets, and oceans clean.
