They’re dreaming of a green Christmas
FESTIVE MARKETS TO BE ENVIRONMENTALLY-FRIENDLY
MANCHESTER council has confirmed a range of sustainable moves it is making to keep this year’s Christmas markets the most environmentally-friendly yet – as thousands are expected to head to the city for the much-loved attraction.
It comes as town hall chiefs recognised the major event leaves behind a ‘huge amount of waste’ each year.
The markets are set to commence in just over two weeks time, from November 12, including at the new relocated hub in Piccadilly Gardens.
A response to a Freedom of Information request made to the council revealed some of the ways it is hoping to act more sustainably this Christmas.
These include energy-efficient LED lighting, using decorations made from biodegradable elements, ensuring all take away consumables are 100 per cent recyclable and compostable, with most being made from cornstarch, paper and sugar- cane.
And for the first time, the council is planning to introduce dry mixed recycling bins across all seven city centre sites in a bid to clamp down on waste.
No glass will be used anywhere across the markets, with drinks served in recyclable containers. Christmas decorations will remain low energy, reusable and environmentally safe.
Chalets will be made from wood that is sourced via the Forest Stewardship Council, which ensures all timber comes from sustainable sources. It comes as the festivities were given the green light to go ahead this year, after previously being scaled down in 2020, due to the coronavirus pandemic.
For the first time, the central hub of the markets will move to Piccadilly Gardens due to the ongoing town hall renovation, which has made Albert Square inaccessible.
No real Christmas trees will be used in the city centre festive lighting scheme.
Council chiefs also confirmed that the market’s power supply is mainly via clean ‘green’ generators, but that work is also being done on the power network across the city to convert this into ‘popup’ electrical supplies. Coun Pat Karney, Manchester’s Christmas spokesman, said: “We have lots of major events in the city and we are conscious that this popularity brings with it a huge amount of waste.
“The city has made a clear commitment to reducing our carbon footprint and we support event holders to deliver events with sustainability at their core.
“For many years we have worked hard to improve the sustainability of the Christmas Markets, in particular - year on year sending less waste to landfill, recycling more and cutting out singleuse plastics altogether.
“This is all part of the city’s target to become zero carbon by 2038 – and this means looking at every part of the Council’s work and looking to reduce what we use, including events.”