Live Green: Shop Local for the Environment!
WICOMICO COUNTY, Md – As Christmas quickly approaches, shoppers racing for last-minute gifts can make a greener choice by shopping local instead of big-box stores.
The holidays are one of the busiest times of the year, especially for the Newland Park Landfill.
“We expect to have a high influx of tonnage on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and effectively for the week following up into the new year from all the post consumer products coming in from Christmas. So it’s a very, very busy time for us,” Acting Director of Public Works, Adam Corry said. “We love to buy things. So, we’re trashing old stuff and we’re getting rid of the containers and stuff. If you think about it, when you went to a butcher shop back in the pre-1950s, you got whatever you ordered from that butcher shop and paper draft and butcher paper, you went home with it. Well, think about it today almost everything you buy comes in some sort of plastic.”
Over-consumption has become the new “norm” in today’s society, but there are a few ways to reduce your waste and reduce your carbon footprint, and one way is by shopping local.
“Small business, as we all know, it’s a hard business to keep going on a day to day. We’ve had a lot of them even close in Salisbury recently, so allowing a market like this for vendors to come in where they’re not having to pay a big rental price, and be able to sell their products and be able to walk away with a profit from our local community. They’re local, they’re driving right to your local Crown Sports Center. It’s not a four hour drive for most of them, and most of the products are going directly to you,” Tanesha Siggers, Co-CEO of Short Acres Artisan and Farmers Market explained.
Around 15-20 local vendors set up at the Crown Sports Center every Thursday, and this is their way of making a living, while also giving back to the community.
Some of the vendors include, The Bay Mushrooms, Krave, Capitola Farms, Pockets Farm, North of Eden Farm, Cast 26 coffee, Tress’s Little Farm, Marble Head Farm, and more. Everything is either locally sourced or handcrafted.
Even if you’re looking for greener ways to decorate, Helen Young from Coastal Creations, who’s been crafting since she was little, designs beautiful decorations from nautical finds and more.
“I like to use things I find in nature. I’ve got some gumballs, some bark, some nut, some acorns. A piece of a mushroom or something off of a log,” Young said. “I make the little trees with, you know, things I find in nature even berries off the Crape Myrtle tree, natural moss. I put a lot of seashells into my crafts as well that I find on the beach. I recycled the angel halo. I’ve recycled that from orange juice slash creamer pull tab.”
She finds most of her crafts from Assateague, even a piece of driftwood, she will use to display her jewelry. Young will up cycle her crafts from thrift finds as well. She has created Christmas Trees, wreaths, center pieces, jewelry and more. Along with shopping local, crafting your own gifts and decorations can keep waste out of our landfills.
“I found some crab line on the beach and I used it in some of my nautical ornaments. So, it’s helping the environment because you’re cleaning up the beach.” Young explained.
Besides shopping local, incorporate recycling in your day to day, and donate what you no longer want.
“We take cardboard, glass, plastics. We take by metal, aluminum cans. We also take newspaper and magazines, and we also do waste oil. If you have waste oil or antifreeze,” Corry listed.
To find a full list of what you can recycle, and other recycling locations across Wicomico County, visit the Wicomico County’s website.
To support local businesses, visit Coastal Creation’s Facebook, and see more vendors at Shore Acres Facebook.
