Paper

Paper top

Deforestation is one of the main environmental problems we’re facing in these times. 14% of all global wood harvest is used to make paper. Is it really worth it to cut down our life saving trees for this product?

- The World Counts

Mindless paper use is incredibly wasteful. On average it takes 5 litres of water to produce one piece of paper and even now not all of it is being recycled, where paper accounts for a quarter of all landfill waste!

I think that's rather mad!

Whilst recycling saves on the amount of water, oil and energy required to produce paper, it is far more beneficial for the environment to reduce your usage and reuse as much as possible!

Paper waste and pollution

PAPER REDUCE ME with these 10 tips below!

1. Make your presents unique

Birthday presents... Christmas presents...you’re out of wrapping paper again and getting yourself into a bit of a frenzy. How about grabbing an old magazine or newspaper instead? We spend so much on wrapping paper and it’s only appreciated for a short time before being ripped off and thrown away.

Last Christmas I wrapped all my presents in newspaper and they went down a treat! I tried to use the pleasant parts rather than subjecting someone to ripping a war crime off their gift! You can also use paper bags or old Christmas cards for your labels which add a unique touch. All this for no extra effort, it will save you money and it’s eco-friendly, what could be better?

2. Paperless is priceless

Almost every bank and energy and water supplier provide the option to go paperless for your bills. All the information can be easily accessed with an online account. Many retail stores are now also sending receipts by email which you can still use to return or exchange items. New Look, Topshop and Mothercare include but a few of the companies using e-receipts which help them to track product trends, but also saves on wasting paper.

3. Let that poor printer rest

Before you hit that print button, whether it be an email trail, a poster or an academic essay, can you work on it from your computer screen instead? Online editing and analysing tools nowadays are well developed and it can be useful to directly compare many documents on one screen in front of you rather than sifting through page after page on your desk!

4. A little wipe can go a long way

Unless you’ve had a particularly bad trip to the toilet, you don’t need half of that loo roll to wipe away your sorrows. You always seem to manage when your house is low on toilet paper and you use one or two sheets per wipe, am I right? Cutting down how much you use will also save you money and reduce the number of trips out buying those humongous packs of 24 rolls.

5. Make the most of it!

How many times have you written one word on that post-it note and then immediately thrown it away? It sounds obvious but something as simple as using the entire piece of paper can help to save on unnecessary paper usage. Don’t forget the back either!

6. Pop it in File Explorer instead

To avoid printing unnecessary documents, store most of them on your computer and regularly back these up either online or on an external hard drive. Lecture notes, spreadsheets, staff information; these documents can be securely stored away exactly where you want them.

7. Magazine subscriptions

All those subscriptions you keep forgetting to cancel continue to pile through the door and you just throw them away. Magazines are also often covered in a plastic wrapping so this not only wastes paper, but uses unnecessary plastic as well. Try subscribing to magazines online instead so all you have to do is delete emails!

8. Old is as good as new

Try to use recycled paper if possible. Bleaching of paper, old or new, is still damaging to the environment, but recycled paper at least cuts out the process of using more trees. You can buy this paper type easily from many stationery stores such as WHSmith and PC World.

9. Everyone hates junk mail

So why do you still let it come through your door? Just pop a sign up outside and hopefully the level of mail will decrease. As a student, I found that takeaways bombarded us and it was always so pointless!

10. Paper plates suck

Having a quick meal? Use something you can quickly wash after use like a ceramic plate or Tupperware. If you’re out and about and really struggling, at least recycle the plates – or just be a monster like me and shove all the food in your mouth with your hands.

PAPER