(ANSA) - ROME, DECEMBER 08 - Decorating the Christmas tree and decorating the house with lights and fairy lights produces in Italy, during the entire Christmas period, up to 20 thousand tons of CO2 which are released into the atmosphere.
This was stated by the Italian Society of Environmental Medicine (Sima), calculating the impact of Christmas on the environment.
In the period from 8 December to 6 January, both the interiors and exteriors of the houses are decorated with Christmas lights that remain on for several hours a day.
- explains Sima - An invasion of luminous wires and light bulbs which determines an increase in energy consumption of about +30% compared to the rest of the year, equal to 1,600 MWh per day or 46,400 MWh of energy consumed only in the period from 8 December to 'Epiphany.
"Christmas and our habits during the holidays have a major impact on the environment, in terms of increased pollution, but also on the bill. - says the president of Sima, Alessandro Miani - An old-generation string of lights kept on for several hours a day during the holidays , for example, affects up to 15 euros per family on the December bill: if 3 of them are used at home between interiors and balconies, the extra cost on the energy front can reach 50 euros. to the LED lights for all the decorations, whose impact on bills is a few euro cents a day.
It is also possible to reduce consumption and waste by using timers that limit the duration of the lights on, and by reducing the number of lights on the Christmas tree by using reflective objects such as mirrors and silver or golden balls", concludes Miani. (ANSA).
