The magic of Halloween is indisputable; the decor, the costumes…. the candy. Whether it’s ghosts hanging from trees, webs covering the bushes, or skeletons guarding doors, I absolutely love atmospheric drives through the neighborhood, admiring all the decked out houses. Not to mention, it’s the only time of year where jumping out of your bush with a chainsaw is socially acceptable. However, this enchanting evening leaves behind a tremendous amount of waste, proving the holiday not as sweet as the candy you collect. The individual candy wrappers are necessary for safety and hygiene, but they pile up so quickly. In addition, the eccentric costumes that fill the streets on Halloween night contain highly flammable PVC plastics, which are almost impossible to recycle and contain extremely polluting toxins, according to an article released by Gauntlet.    

Candy wrappers are made with a combination of plastic, aluminum and paper. This mixture makes recycling them a tedious task and a costly investment. Items that are made from only one medium are easier for companies to recover material that can be used in other products. Most recycling companies do not put in the effort for this daunting process, and these wrappers inevitably make their way to the landfills. 

These seemingly small wrappers are not on the radar of most people, although they have an immense impact on the environment. The issue is that there just is not enough waste to attract the attention of our society. Items that are more prominent in our waste stream, such as glass and paper, overshadow the smaller things. However, these other pollutants pile up, especially in landfills, and if it is continuously ignored, it will become a greater threat to our environment in the future.

Even an issue as large as plastic waste can be overlooked by our society. Think of it like this: two hundred years from now, long after you’ve passed, that Halo Master Chief mask your brother bought for Halloween in 2015 will still be sitting in a landfill, waiting for decomposition to finally take over. I don’t know about you, but there is no way I’m letting my brother’s fifth grade Halloween costume outlive me. 

Almost 85% of costumes will eventually end up in a landfill, according to Budget Dumpster. This plastic waste is just as big of a threat as plastic bottles and should, therefore, be treated as such. Furthermore, it is not just the costumes that contribute to the plastic waste, it is also the decoration and cosmetics. The face paint and fake blood used for costumes contain highly toxic chemicals that are not only harmful to the environment, but also us humans.   

So what can you do about this? Well, first off, we can all agree that homemade costumes look a million times cooler than one you can get at Party City. Not to mention, they will also save you a couple bucks. This Halloween, try putting together a costume using things from a thrift store or items you already have at home. If you do end up buying a costume, reuse it the following year! 

Now you may be thinking, “how the heck am I going to find candy with recyclable wrappers?” I’m happy to inform you that there are still candy companies that only use foil, paper, or cardboard packaging, which are all materials that can be recycled much easier than plastics. Buying these candies will keep trick or treaters happy, while simultaneously keeping our planet clean.