Victoria Advocate: Recycled Paper Used to Make New Paper
Filed under: Earth911 - April 28, 2009
According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 83 million tons of paper product waste was generated in 2007. That is equivalent to the weight of 500 space shuttles.
The good news is that over half this amount was recovered through recycling programs such as the one offered here in Victoria.
I would like to continue my profile of everything that is accepted at the city’s recycling drop-off centers by taking a look at paper products.
Newspaper, office paper, magazines, catalogs, phone books, paperboard and cardboard can all be recycled here in Victoria.
The city requires paper to be clean and dry and will not accept carbon paper or any paper that is yellow or brittle.
It is helpful to sort your paper into three categories: corrugated cardboard, paperboard and mixed paper.
I have been asked about the difference between cardboard and paperboard, and the answer is simple.
Corrugated cardboard has two sheets of flat cardboard with a wavy portion running through the center. This is your typical cardboard box.
On the other hand, paperboard is a thin sheet of pressed, firm paper used as packaging for a wide range of products. Cereal boxes, soft drink boxes, tissue boxes and paper egg cartons are all examples of paperboard.
Because corrugated cardboard is a higher quality product than paperboard, they are recycled into different things and need to be sorted from one another.
Earth911.com estimates that paper can be recycled up to seven times. Amazing. But now that you’ve hauled it to the drop-off center, what is all your paper going to be recycled into?
The answer may surprise you. Cardboard, paperboard, newsprint, office paper, tissues, wrapping paper, paper bags and even insulation materials are all made using recycled paper.
In fact, recycled paper accounts for over one-third of the fiber used to make new paper products here in the U.S. This is important in conserving the natural resources, namely our forests, used to make virgin paper products.
How can you get into the habit of recycling paper instead of throwing it away? It can be a challenge at first.
Placing a recycling bin in areas where paper is often discarded, maybe near your printer or where you sort your mail, is a good start. Don’t toss that junk mail into the trash—recycle it instead.
In addition to the one in my kitchen, I have recycling bins (usually a second trash can) in the bathroom, office and sewing room to collect an assortment of recyclables.
When they fill up I bring them to the garage for sorting into the individual bins.
Reuse, as in Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, is another important aspect of the recycling process and a way to prolong the life of your paper products.
If you do a lot of printing, setting your printer to the double-sided option is a good way to reduce the amount of paper you use.
If your printer does not have that feature, think about saving your discarded print jobs near the printer. When you print things for personal use, such as your bank statements or confirmation of an online purchase, take a piece of paper from the stack of old print jobs and insert it into the printer to be printed on the backside.
If you use paper grocery bags, bring them back to the store to reuse a few times before you recycle them.
With today’s ever-increasing demand on our energy supply, it is important to conserve wherever possible, and recycling is an easy way to do it.
According to Earth911.com, every ton of mixed paper recycled can save the energy equivalent of 185 gallons of gasoline. So when you’re finished reading today’s newspaper, I hope this inspires you to drop it in your recycling bin instead of your trash can. Keep on recycling.