Eco-Friendly Landscaping and Other Ideas for a Green Wedding

We have talked about a number of trends in the eco-friendly landscaping and construction sector since this blog was formed. Most of our discussions center around general principles with creating an eco-friendly property.

However, you sometimes want to create a new structure or change the landscape for a specific purpose. This purpose could be temporary, such as a wedding.

A growing number of people are having eco-friendly weddings these days. There are a lot of ways that you can change the landscaping and erect new structures to make sure your wedding has as low of a carbon footprint as possible. There are also other ways that you can lower your carbon footprint, which we will discuss in this article.

Sustainable Landscaping and Other Guidelines for Having an Eco-Friendly Wedding

Weddings are meant to be a fun celebration of love, filled with food, dancing and indulgence. However, all the extravagance often leads to excessive waste. In our current climate where conservation and sustainability-driven practices are crucial, what can be done to make a wedding less detrimental to the environment? One way that has become popular in recent years is to throw a “green” wedding. Around 65% of couples that married over the past year had an eco-friendly wedding.

Not all that different from traditional ceremonies, green weddings are simply a couple’s effort to incorporate environmentally friendly elements into the event. The aim is to diminish the festivity’s impact by opting for eco-conscientious venues, biodegradable or reusable décor, locally sourced ingredients and so on. As you get your upcoming nuptials in order, you may be wondering how to make the big day less harmful to the planet.

There are a lot of things that you can do to create an eco-friendlier wedding. One option is to pursue the right eco-friendly building practices when creating gazebos and other structures to host your guests. There are other green building practices to follow as well. To help, here are a few pointers on throwing an eco-friendlier wedding.

Build an Eco-Friendly Venue

One of the first things to address is the venue. Since the purpose of this blog is about sustainable construction, we will talk about this in depth.

A lot goes into preparing a party and the space where it will held. From the lighting, heating or air conditioning, decoration and more, the setting calls for a lot of resources to maintain and adorn it. One way to work around these is to seek out a responsible venue or one with LEED certifications. Another is to hold the event outdoors while being mindful of the impact. This may include setting up adequate recycling, allocating reusable furniture or even using candles sensibly.

You will want to make sure that any temporary structures are designed to be as sustainable as possible. This includes the gazebo, tents and other structures that will host your guests.

Serve Eco-Friendly Food and Drinks

Next, there’s what to serve. Food and beverages are a staple of a wedding, but these goods are often shipped in and dished up in generous amounts. For a green wedding, it’s advised to choose in-season food, sourced locally and grown organically, for the menu. If catering, make sure the supplier knows these choices are important to you. These steps can reduce emissions caused by transportation. Speaking of transport, another way lessen your carbon footprint is to provide a shuttle or ask guests to carpool. The same can be said for holding the reception and ceremony at the same location.

Use Ethical Diamonds

Lastly, there are small items to consider. For instance, conflict-free diamonds are less detrimental, ecologically and ethically speaking, than mined diamonds. Produced in a controlled setting, these lab-grown diamonds minimize the impact on our natural resources as well as the pollutants generated by conventional mining. Another small item to change is the stationery. By opting for paper products made from recycled materials and all-natural wedding favors, you can decrease the amount of landfilled waste.

With all the green alternatives and companies striving to reduce their impact within the industry these days, there are plenty of ways to diminish the waste and pollution of a wedding. The key is to make lessening your carbon footprint a priority early on while planning your dream wedding. For additional eco-friendly ideas, please see the accompanying resource.

Infographic created by Grown Brilliance, a lab diamond engagement rings provider.