We don't want to sound like party poopers or anything, but just how sustainable are London's Christmas decorations?
Much better than they used to be, seems to be the answer. All modern displays in London use energy efficient LEDs, which consume a fraction of the electricity gobbled up by the iridescent bulbs of yesteryear. But that's only part of the equation. Manufacture, shipping and installation all have carbon costs. And what becomes of all the plastic, metal and wood once Christmas is done?
We took a look at some of London's more prominent displays to see what they're doing to mitigate their environmental impact.
Trafalgar Square Christmas tree
Donated annually by the people of Norway, the Trafalgar Square tree is perhaps London's most famous Christmas mainstay. Which is lovely. But cutting down a massive, 60-year old tree and shipping it hundreds of miles to London sounds like the opposite of sustainability. What's being done to mitigate?
Well, the first part of the tree's journey — a 180km road trip from the north of Oslo to the port of Brevik — is undertaken by electric truck. "This positive step helps lower the carbon footprint and is an important part of making the tradition more sustainable," we're told. The use of biodiesel for the felling equipment helps further.
The sea crossing is then done "on a cargo ship that is already on a regular route." Its journey from the east-coast port of Immingham to London is glossed over, so we can assume this is by conventional diesel truck. Once installed, the tree shines with energy-efficient lights. And, when the Christmas spirit has fled for another year, the tree will be recycled as compost.
More on the Trafalgar Square tree here.
Oxford Street lights
Mesmerising light displays don't come for free. Behind all the twinkling fairy lights of Oxford Street comes an unseen energy bill (picked up by local shop and landowners, with a contribution from Westminster Council). But what's the environmental impact?
According to the New West End Company, which organises the lights, the display uses LEDs that are 75% more energy efficient than standard bulbs. That's still going to add up, when summed across the 300,000 LEDs that make up the lights, but much less energy hungry than displays of previous decades. In addition, the star-shaped housing is made from recycled polymer, which will be used along Oxford Street for many years to come. As a further mitigation, the lights will only be illuminated between 4pm and midnight, rather than shining out all night long. The Regent Street lights and other West End displays run to a similar playbook.
More on the Oxford Street lights here.
Carnaby Street lights
Carnaby's displays, from design studio Sculptivate, also use energy-efficient LEDs as, we suspect, do almost all Christmas light shows these days. But here they have a further trick up their fashionable sleeves. "The lights are designed to be reused for at least five years," we're told, "with adaptive functionality allowing for new features and adjustments over time. The programmable lights will evolve year after year, ensuring that the display remains fresh and captivating throughout the life of the installation."
Bishopsgate tree at Pan Pacific
The West End doesn't monopolise festive glow. What's being described as London's largest Christmas tree (just over 20 metres... similar to Trafalgar Square's) stands in front of the recently built Pan Pacific hotel, towards the southern end of Bishopsgate. It really is a dazzler, with 65,000 LEDs and over 800 baubles.
Clunkily called the "Eastern Cit-Tree", the towering fir "has been created by The Christmas Decorators – a company committed to sustainability which has earned them the Carbon Footprint Standard, therefore contributing to a greener, sustainable future." According to the Christmas Decorators' website, they'll go the extra mile to offset the carbon impact from their trees, if the customer wishes. We contacted Pan Pacific to see if this is the case, but have only received holding messages up to now. No word, either, on how the tree will be recycled or reused after this Christmas.
