Now is the time to support our local businesses

Cooler temperatures and shorter days are sure signs that the holiday season is ahead. Of course, as with so many other things in 2020, the holiday season will look different this year as gatherings, traditions, events and how and where we shop are being reimagined with COVID-19 health precautions in mind.
Our local business community has struggled during the COVID-19 pandemic. If you are going to purchase holiday gifts, now more than ever, let’s support them. Whether it’s a local craft or looking ahead to summer and purchasing a gift voucher for an experience, supporting local will help give a much-needed lift to our business community.
Additionally, with a bit of re-thinking, we can have a wonderful holiday season and limit our impact on the environment. We can help reduce waste and help others by donating items you no longer use that are still in good condition. The majority of holiday waste that ends up in our landfill each year is made up of discarded packing and wrapping materials.
Planning for holiday meals will also look different this year; however, it is also a season when we throw away a lot of food. Organic waste, comprised primarily of food waste and food-soiled paper from businesses, households, and institutions, represents the largest component of waste sent to the landfill: a whopping 35 to 40
percent.
Since the Green Bin program began this fall, about 62 tonnes of food waste has been collected from households in Halfmoon Bay, Roberts Creek, Elphinstone and West Howe Sound. Based on the data to date, this has resulted in a 40 percent decrease in organics going to the landfill and extending the life of the landfill, which at our current rate of disposal, is scheduled to close
in 2026.
While there may be many holiday traditions that we cannot do this year, let’s try to focus on what we can do. Whether it’s small gatherings with your immediate household, cooking, gift-giving, watching movies or exploring the Sunshine Coast with your family during the Christmas holidays, let’s make this a holiday season where we all take a moment to realize just how different this past year has been in all of our lives.
On behalf of the Sunshine Coast Regional District Board, we would like to extend our best wishes to our residents, visitors, and community partners for a safe, happy and green holiday
season.