Recycling paper is not difficult to do and provides various benefits, however, most of us still do not do it often enough - if at all. What follows is a review of some of the benefits on offer. After reading through them, hopefully you will be more aware of the importance of recycling at least some of the paper that you use.
- As paper is made from trees, the less paper we use the less trees have to be cut down. The effect of cutting down trees is devastating on the environment. Whole ecosystems can come to an end as a result of just part of a forest being cut down. Therefore, recycling paper saves many animals and a lot of plant-life. There is also the visual impact that deforestation to consider. Google the term ‘deforestation’ and see for yourself what a stain excessively cutting down trees leaves on our planet.
- There are many useful everyday items that can be made from recycled paper. These are some examples - newspapers, phonebooks, cardboard boxes, envelopes, egg cartons, paper towels, toilet paper and notebooks. If items such as these are not made from recycled paper then more trees have to be cut down to produce them, which really is a waste, as these items are equally good made when they are made from recycled paper.
- Money can be saved in two ways by recycling paper. Firstly, from a manufacturing point of view, it costs much less to turn waste paper into new paper products than it does to turn trees into new paper products. Secondly, as consumers, by buying recycled products we can save money as they nearly always cost less than ones made from virgin pulp. In these harsh economic times, avoiding unnecessary leakage in any part of the economy makes sense.
- Used paper based products that are not recycled have to be got rid of in other ways, namely either in landfill sites or at incineration plants. Landfill sites are both an eyesore and a problem for the environment. Why waste space in landfill sites with paper when there is a better solution - recycling. As for incinerating waste paper, doing so pumps harmful toxins into the atmosphere.
- Recycling paper means water consumption is reduced (1 ton of recycled paper can save over 6500 gallons of water) and less electricity is used (more than 400 kilowatt hours are saved by recycling 1 ton of paper). It also helps reduces our dependence on oil. Saving 2 barrels per ton of recycled paper really makes a difference in the long term.