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Real or fake: Which Christmas tree is better for the environment?

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Real or fake: Which Christmas tree is better for the environment?

For those celebrating Christmas, you may be increasingly concerned about your carbon footprint when it comes to traditional decoration. Let’s get down to the truth.

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It’s the annual dilemma… Do you buy an artificial tree that you may or may not reuse or do you get a real one that will for sure be thrown away eventually?

Let’s start with the artificial tree. Nearly 90% of them are shipped across the world from China, according to The Nature Conservancy, a US-based environmental organisation.

These trees are most likely made of polyvinyl chloride or PVC, which produces greenhouse gases when manufactured and is not biodegradable. 

In fact, PVC is one of the most difficult plastics to recycle.

According to The Carbon Trust, a two-metre-tall artificial tree produces about 40 kg of carbon dioxide, whereas a similar-sized real Christmas tree, with no roots, creates 3.5 kg CO2 – so more than 10 times less than the artificial one. 

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But what if you reuse it? You would need about ten to 20 Christmases to keep its environmental impact lower than buying a real tree every year. 

But isn’t cutting down real fir trees similar to deforestation? The main problem with real trees is the impact of Christmas tree farms, which in some cases displace natural ecosystems, according to a study by Ellipsos.

Ellipsos also argued it could be a waste to cut down a real tree for one single use before turning it into mulch or compost. 

However, buying real trees will help keep tree farms in business. Denmark is Europe’s largest exporter of Christmas trees, producing 11 million trees every year.

In Belgium, Europe’s second-largest exporter, tree producers have an estimated turnover of €35 million, according to the European Commission.

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What’s the smartest choice?

In the end, the smartest option all depends on each person’s situation. But here are some things you can do to make the greenest choice, according to The Carbon Trust. 

  • If you get a real tree, make sure it’s locally grown and that you either walk or don’t drive too far to buy it.
  • If you get an artificial tree, make it last. Buy it used or keep it as long as you can.
  • When done with the tree, make sure to throw it away responsibly by donating it to a new home or turning it into mulch.
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Five convicted over Amsterdam clashes with Israeli football fans

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Five convicted over Amsterdam clashes with Israeli football fans

Men found guilty of crimes including kicking fans of Maccabi Tel Aviv and inciting violence in chat groups.

A Dutch court has convicted five men for their part in last month’s violence involving Israeli football fans in Amsterdam.

The Amsterdam district court on Tuesday found them guilty of a range of crimes from kicking fans of Maccabi Tel Aviv in the street to inciting violence in chat groups.

The heaviest sentence imposed was six months in prison, for a man identified as Sefa O for public violence against several people.

The violence took place on November 8 during two days of skirmishes in the city, where the Israeli football fans clashed with apparent pro-Palestinian protesters before and after a Europa League football match between their team Maccabi Tel Aviv and Ajax.

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Videos shared on social media at the time showed Israeli fans chanting racist, anti-Arab songs, vandalising a taxi and burning a Palestinian flag.

The fighting broke out after that and was instigated by the Israeli fans, witnesses and a local councilman told Al Jazeera at the time.

Police arrested people who had beaten the Israeli fans, as global leaders made accusations of anti-Semitism.

The prosecutor in the case said the beatings had “little to do with football” but added that “in this case, there was no evidence of … a terrorist intent and the violence was not motivated by anti-Semitic sentiment”.

“The violence was influenced by the situation in Gaza, not by anti-Semitism,” said the prosecutor.

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The most serious case under consideration by the court on Tuesday was Sefa, who prosecutors said played a “leading role” in the violence.

The court saw images of a man identified as Sefa kicking a person on the ground, chasing targets, and punching people in the head and the body.

Another man identified as Umutcan A, 24, received a sentence of one month for assaulting fans and ripping a Maccabi scarf from one of them.

A 22-year-old, identified as Abushabab M, faces a charge of attempted murder, but his case has been postponed while he undergoes a psychiatric assessment. He was born in the Gaza Strip and grew up in a war zone, his lawyer told the court, while Abushabab sat sobbing as his case was being heard.

A further six suspects are set to appear at a later stage. Three of these suspects are minors and their cases will be heard behind closed doors.

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Police said they were investigating at least 45 people over the violence, including that carried out by fans of the Israeli club.

At an emotionally charged news conference the morning after the riots, Amsterdam Mayor Femke Halsema said the city had been “deeply damaged” by “hateful anti-Semitic rioters”.

However, Halsema later said she regretted the parallel she had drawn between the violence and “memories of pogroms”, saying this word had been used as propaganda.

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Asia shares rise, dollar underpinned by elevated bond yields

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Asia shares rise, dollar underpinned by elevated bond yields
Asian stocks edged up on Tuesday, though moves were subdued in a holiday-curtailed week, while the greenback held near a two-year high helped by elevated U.S. Treasury yields as investors prepared for fewer Federal Reserve rate cuts in 2025.
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US military carries out airstrike in Syria, killing 2 ISIS operatives

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US military carries out airstrike in Syria, killing 2 ISIS operatives

The U.S. military conducted an airstrike on Monday in Syria, where they killed a pair of ISIS operatives and destroyed a truckload of weapons, according to U.S. Central Command.

A precision airstrike in the Dayr az Zawr Province, which was formerly controlled by the Syrian regime and Russians, killed two ISIS operatives and wounded another, CENTCOM said.

TRUMP COULD FACE RENEWED ISIS THREAT IN SYRIA AS TURKEY GOES AFTER US ALLY

The U.S. military conducted an airstrike on Monday in Syria, where they killed a pair of ISIS operatives and destroyed a truckload of weapons. (Chris Graythen/Getty Images)

The operatives were driving a truckload of weapons, which was destroyed, when they were targeted in the strike.

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BIDEN ADMIN LIFTS $10M BOUNTY ON THE HEAD OF LEADER OF ISLAMIST GROUP NOW IN CHARGE OF SYRIA

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CENTCOM forces conducted a precision airstrike in the Dayr az Zawr Province in Syria. (AP Photo)

“This airstrike is part of CENTCOM’s ongoing commitment, along with partners in the region, to disrupt and degrade efforts by terrorists to plan, organize, and conduct attacks against civilians and military personnel from the U.S., our allies, and our partners throughout the region and beyond,” CENTCOM said in a statement.

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