| November 25, 2003
News Release The Friday after Thanksgiving Americans kicks off the biggest shopping season of the year, which is also the time of year where Americans generate the most waste. Nationwide, 25 percent more waste is generated between Thanksgiving and New Years than any other time of year. To lighten the holiday load on shoppers and the environment, The King County Department of Natural Resources and Parks Solid Waste Division is partnering with local businesses and nonprofits to encourage people to give experiences instead of stuff, with King County's Waste Free Holidays. From Thanksgiving through the end of December, more than 85 participants will offer discounts of up to 50 percent on everything from tickets and gift certificates to music, sports, plays, restaurants, massages and much more. "Giving experiences instead of stuff could be a welcome change for friends and family and is kinder to the environment," said Tom Watson of King County's Solid Waste Division. "People get something they will treasure and remember, and it helps cut the amount of waste generated during the holidays. With these great discounts people are rewarded for reducing waste." Americans throw away more trash from Thanksgiving to New Years Day than any other time of year – 25 percent more to be exact. Added food waste, shopping bags, packaging, wrapping paper, bows and ribbons add up to an additional 1 million tons a week to the nation's garbage piles. And if every family used just two feet less of holiday ribbon, the 38,000 miles of ribbon saved could tie a bow around the Earth. An experience can also be a memorable gift. A nationwide survey (conducted by EDK Associates for the Center for a New American Dream) showed 27 percent of those surveyed couldn't remember what they had received for Christmas the previous year, and an additional 15 percent needed time to recall. The gifts may have been forgettable, but the debt wasn't; more than half surveyed said they had accumulated debt for holiday shopping, and 28 percent were still paying holiday bills into the following October. The Waste Free Holidays program discounts memorable events ranging from tickets to music events to luxurious spa treatments, from yoga classes to dinners out. And experiential gifts require no wrapping or packaging. Many, can be purchased over the phone or online, cutting traffic, pollution and parking. For more information on Waste Free Holidays visit the program Web site or contact Tom Watson at (206) 296-4481. 2003 Waste Free Holidays participants Dance/Ballet Ballet Bellevue The Evergreen City Ballet Pacific Northwest Ballet UW Chamber Dance Company Velocity Dance Center Lessons 8 Limbs Yoga Centers Columbia Winery Jet City Espresso Museums/Visual Arts The Burke Museum of Natural History & Culture Center on Contemporary Art Kirkland Arts Center Northwest Railway Museum Odyssey Maritime Discovery Center Pratt Fine Arts Center Seattle IMAX Dome Theater Tacoma Art Museum Music The Aranoff Chamber Music Series Cascadian Chorale Earshot Jazz Society of Seattle The Federal Way Symphony Gallery Concerts Issaquah Chorale Music Center of the Northwest Northwest Folklife Orchestra Seattle/Seattle Chamber Singers Seattle Chamber Music Society Seattle Symphony UW School of Music Rest & Relaxation Argosy Cruises Body Harmony Massage Calluna Day Spa & Holistic Retreat Executive Pacific Plaza Hotel Fairfield Inn by Marriott (SeaTac) FloatZone Inn at Queen Anne Jeremy Todd Wellness Spa & Salon Klein Massage & Day Spa Lindsey Lawson Acupuncture Marqueen Hotel Massage Missionary Mercer Island Travelodge Paule Attar Salon & Spa Pelage Spa and Skin Centre Rachel's Beauty Supply & Salon Rosario Resort & Spa University Inn Watertown Hotel Restaurants BB Magraw's Sports Bar & Restaurant Cactus Restaurant (Kirkland only) Casa D'Italia Market & Café Chez Shea Cold Stone Creamery (Factoria Mall & Saffron Center only) El Puerco Lloron Restaurant Ginger Lime The Grand Central Bakery Il Bistro Restaurant Jet City Espresso Julia's of Issaquah Julia's of Wallingford Julia's on Broadway The Pink Door Restaurant Sporting Events & Recreation Emerald Downs Everett Aquasox Everett Silvertips Gymboree (Ballard, Issaquah, Alderwood & Redmond only) King County Pools Mountain Madness Pacific Science Center Play Time, Inc. Rivers, Inc. Seattle Sonics Seattle Thunderbirds Woodland Park Zoo Theatre The 5th Avenue Theatre ACT Theatre ArtsWest Playhouse and Gallery Auburn Arts Commission Book-It Repertory Theatre Centerstage Theatre Arts Freehold Studio/Theatre Lab INTIMAN Theatre On the Boards Seattle Children's Theatre Seattle Shakespeare Company SecondStory Repertory Theatre Taproot Theatre Company Theatre Babylon UW School of Drama Related Information
King County Waste Free Holidays King County Solid Waste Division |
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