Green

Paper

Deforestation continues to be a major issue, and we waste so much paper!  Americans consume over 25% of the world's harvested wood, though we make up less than 5% of the population.  27 million trees each year are used for paper towels alone; 62 million trees are destroyed for junk mail; the holiday season sees 5 million tons of discarded wrapping paper.  The US uses 30,000 reams (15 million sheets) every five minutes.

First Steps:

• Use cloth napkins and dishtowels √

• Use cloth bags for shopping (Ignore the "Paper or Plastic?" question altogether) (www.clothbag.com) √

• Wrap gifts in reusable materials (cloth bags) or in recyclable waste paper

• Look for limited packaging in what we buy √

• Bring re-usable containers to restaurants (instead of using their Styrofoam, etc.)

• Eliminate junk mail (www.dmaconsumers.org/consumerassistance.html) √

• Pay your bills online.  Ask those companies which do bill to stop adding junk inserts √

• Recycle all waste paper. (www.earth911.org) √

• Buy recycled or tree-free when you can √

Bigger Steps:

• Reuse everything you can (reuse envelopes and make your own; save boxes, etc.) √

• Choose cloth diapers for babies

• Plant a tree (www.arborday.org often offers free trees) √

• Reduce beef consumption (this reduces the demand to deforest for cattle grazing) √

• Buy sustainably produced furniture √

Biggest Steps:

• Switch electricity use.  50+% of American energy is from coal; 50% of coal comes from Appalachian mining which sheers the tops off mountains and removal of forests (www.eere.energy.gov/greenpower/buying/ )

• Build green at home (Watch for Forest Stewardship Council--FSC--logo).

• Write to magazines and ask them to switch

• Support legislation to protect forests

• Support forest-friendly policies with city council

• Talk to others √

Downcycling:  Most paper can only be recycled a few times (called downcycling) before the fibers become too short to use.  After that, most paper is land-filled.