By Tayhana Taylor, World News Editor
Pumpkin carving is a fun and exciting tradition for many during the Halloween season, but what happens to those Jack-o-Lanterns after Oct. 31?
Waste Dive, a website dedicated to publishing articles that provide insight into shaping waste and recycling, reports that 1.3 billion pounds of pumpkins end up in landfills annually after Halloween has passed.
Although pumpkins are bio-degradable, according to the World Economic Forum, when pumpkins are dumped in landfills to rot and decompose, one of the end results is the production of methane. Methane is a greenhouse gas that traps heat in the atmosphere—this eventually contributes to speeding up climate change.
“Anytime something is dumped in the garbage or a landfill, there will be a negative environmental impact,” said Dr. Christopher Miller, a professor of ecology and biology at Saint Leo University. “In Pasco County, garbage is burnt, so whether it is a Styrofoam box or a rotten Jack-o-Lantern, toxic chemicals are still being released into the atmosphere.”
Typically, after Halloween, people toss their pumpkins out in their nearest trash bins without considering the environmental effect of dumping their Jack-o-Lanterns.
“During Halloween, people use pumpkins to create Jack-o-Lanterns which lasts for a few days, but the unfortunate thing is that sometimes the long-term environmental impact is not considered,” said Miller.
There are various ways to prevent the increase of environmental waste, all while enjoying using Jack-o-Lanterns during Halloween; one of these ways is through composting.
“Composting is the process of taking organic bio-degradable products like vegetable or fruit matter and turning them into soil that can be used for gardening,” said Miller. “Currently there are no composting programs on the university’s campus, but composting is a great practice for homeowners.”
For those living at home, creating or using a compost bin is a great way to not only get rid of Jack-o-Lanterns, but any other food that would be dumped in the trash. A compost bin can be set up in a backyard or any outdoor space using materials such as wires, twigs, and scrap lumber to create a base that is at least three feet deep. Compost should always be kept moist and covered, and requires turning every few weeks with a tool, such as a pitchfork.
“To compost your pumpkins in a compost bin, you would split the pumpkins into smaller pieces to speed up the composting process,” said Miller. “Cover the compost bin after adding the pumpkins with some leaves and within a few months, this pumpkin would have been converted to some usable organic manner.”
Although the pumpkins used to create Jack-o-Lantern are not the same as those sold in the produce section of the grocery store, certain parts of the Jack-o-Lantern are edible, like the seeds.
“Each year I use the seeds from my pumpkin to create a snack, I put them on a baking sheet, add some seasonings and then pop them in the oven for roasting,” said Miller.
Eating pumpkin seeds have a multitude of health benefits. According to Heart.org, pumpkin seeds are rich in nutrients like magnesium, lowering blood pressure and blood sugar levels, helping with sleep, and preventing migraines.
The Wildlife Department at Georgia Department of Natural Resources reports that Jack-o-Lanterns can be turned into treats for animals. In some instances, local farmers accept donations of Jack-o-Lanterns to feed their livestock. This is another way to prevent pumpkins from filling up landfills annually.
Next Halloween, practice being environmentally conscious about how to dispose of your Jack-o-Lanterns or think about if you actually need to carve one.
