As we prepare to celebrate Thanksgiving, it’s the perfect moment to think about how our traditions can honor both people and the planet. This year, why not make your celebration a little greener? We’ve taken last year’s handy guide and added even more simple tips to help you celebrate sustainably this holiday season, all the way through the new year.
Buy Ingredients Locally
Local produce is a great addition to Thanksgiving dishes and reduces your carbon footprint. Consider checking out farmer’s markets to pick up a few ingredients for your green bean casserole or turkey stuffing. For those in The Woodlands area, visit the Grogan’s Mill Farmer’s Market or the Farmer’s Market on Tamina every Saturday for fresh fruits and vegetables, or even a homemade pastry!
Opt for Reusable Dinnerware
Disposable plastic or paper plates might reduce the number of dishes you have to clean, but they’ll have you piling up bags of trash by the end of the night. Instead, go with reusable plates, napkins, and utensils this year to reduce your post-holiday waste. If you can’t bear to part with the convenience of single-use items, consider trying compostable plates and silverware and bring them in a paper or certified compostable bag to a local composting facility, along with your uneaten leftovers.
Compost Food Scraps
Each year, over 300 million pounds of food waste ends up wasted after Thanksgiving. Instead of throwing it into the trash, capture those veggie scraps, eggshells, forgotten mashed potatoes and add them to a backyard compost pile. Not sure where to start? We have a class the first Saturday of the month from December to Marchto help answer all your questions!
Bones, meats and oils don’t belong in a backyard pile, and if you don’t want to start one until after you take the class, scrape the food waste off your plates into a sturdy paper (or certified compostable) bag and visit a local facility to drop it off for free!
Don’t Dump Grease
After you’ve enjoyed your deep-fried Thanksgiving turkey, you have probably wondered what to do with the gallons of accompanying grease. While it may seem harmless to pour your used oil down the drain, any amount of cooking oil can damage your kitchen plumbing, local sewage systems, and even harm wildlife. The solution? Recycle it!
Montgomery County residents can bring cooking oil to the Precinct 3 Recycling Facility during regular business hours. Please note that the facility will be closed Thursday, November 27 through Saturday, November 29, 2025, in observance of the holiday. Residents of Harris County can recycle used cooking oil free of charge at their county’s Household Hazardous Waste Collection Facility during regular business hours, by appointment only.
Gift with Sustainability in Mind
Holiday shopping is bound to be on your to-do list soon; as it’s out with the old and in with the new, it can be hard to keep those trash cans from overflowing! Join us at this year’s Sustainable Giftwrapping Workshop on Friday, December 12, 2025, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at The Woodlands Township Town Hall to wrap your gifts with eco-friendly flare! All materials for wrapping gifts are provided.
If you can’t make it to our workshop, don’t fret! From knowing which giftwrap is recyclable to purchasing reusable options, we’ve provided our top tips for gifting sustainably this year – check out page 11 of The Woodlands November 2024 magazine to get started.
Choose Your Christmas Tree with Care
As you pick out your Christmas tree this season, take a moment to think ahead about how you’ll dispose of it after the holidays! Real trees covered in artificial snow (known as flocking) must be landfilled, while unflocked, natural trees can be composted. To stay eco-friendly, consider using white garlands or ornaments instead of flocking, and mark your calendar now for post-holiday disposal options.
Thanksgiving Service Reminders
When the cooking, eating, and visiting are done, please remember there will be NO solid waste collection services on Thursday, November 27, 2025, in observance of the Thanksgiving holiday. Curbside services will resume on Friday, November 30, 2025.
Households that usually receive pickup on Thursday or Friday will receive collection on the day following their regular service day. If you end up with more waste than your carts can hold, purchase pink tags for extra trash or visit The Woodlands Recycling Center for extra cardboard and recyclables.
