How to Recycle Paper

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By eHow Contributing Writer

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(148 Ratings)

For every ton of paper that is recycled, 17 trees live. You can recycle most paper, including white office paper, newspaper and mixed-color paper, through a local curbside recycling program.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Brown Paper Bags
Old Newspapers
Recycle Bins
Twine
Twine

Step 1

Check with your county department of public works to find out about local curbside recycling programs and community drop-off centers, or look under "Recycling" in the yellow pages. Also call 1 (800) CLEANUP for state recycling information.
Step 2

Separate paper into three groups: white office paper, newspaper, and mixed-color paper. Most curbside programs will collect it this way.
Step 3

Recycle all white office paper (usually from laser printers or copiers) together. Be sure to remove the wrappers they come in. These are a lower grade of paper and cannot be recycled with the white office paper and should be recycled with mixed-color paper.
Step 4

Take newspapers, and place them in brown bags, which can be recycled with newspapers, or tie them in bundles with twine (a natural fiber). Colored advertising inserts can also be recycled with newspapers. Be sure to remove rubber bands, plastic and anything that is not paper.
Step 5

Place all mixed-color paper together. This includes anything from magazines to junk mail. Staples do not need to be removed. Remove all plastic stickers, membership cards and anything that is not paper.
Step 6

Contact the American Forest & Paper Association for more information about recycling paper.

Comments

mkjones said

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on 6/19/2009 Anyone notice in the "Tips & Warnings" section that thermal paper can't be recycled? That's unbelievable. Think about receipts you get from retailers...that's thermal paper! I can't imagine how much paper that accounts for. I was doing some poking around on the web and found a company called alletronic who offers a "paperless" solution by allowing retailers to send digital receipts to customers. It looks like you just associate one of your current debit/credit cards with the company and when you swipe it, a digital receipt gets sent to your allEtronic account. I think its a pretty good idea, and can really see it taking off. What do you think? There's more info about how it works on their website www.alletronic.com

jerryb1 said

on 3/9/2009 I find the suggestion made by anonymous as both intriguing and promising for letters of a personal nature sent between individuals. I conclude that the system would not work for business purposes in most parts of the world. I surmise that from the description offered,correspondence is folded in an entirely different manner that is used here in the USA. I ask Anonymous to please return to this 'How to' to explain how letters are folded in the U.K.

Greenrecycling said

on 10/17/2008 This is a great article. The need to break down recycled paper into types in the home/ office in invaluable in ensuring that it all gets recycled. If a couple of sheets are contaminated, recycling companies have a tendancy to treat an entire load as being useless and simply ship it out for sorting in developing countries.

Richard

http://www.clearitgreen.co.uk

Son0fHobs said

on 6/9/2008 I'm an Origami enthusiast, and I like recycling, so this DIY project came as a natural. My BIG QUESTION is:
Can one make recycled paper as maleable, "foldable," and as thin as regular printing paper? All my attempts have ended up far too brittle for folding. If you have the brilliant solution, please e-mail me how at dhobson@email.unc.edu. THANKS!