Office Paper Put in Recycling Cart/Bin Recycle clean paper. Tape is OK. Do not recycle paper that has foil or grease/food residue. Staples, Labels and Stickers Are OK Paper can be recycled with staples, labels and stickers attached. These items are small contaminants that are removed during the recycling process. No Glitter, Glue or Paint A piece of paper that’s covered with lots of glitter, glue, and/or paint contains too many contaminants to go through the paper recycling process. How Small Is Too Small? Sometimes small bits of paper cannot be recycled because they get lost in the recycling process. In general, try to recycle everything receipt-sized or larger. Find out what to do with shredded paper. Ways to Reduce Go Paperless Many companies have already made the transition to becoming “paperless.” Take stock of your business activities and see what could be handled or stored online instead of on paper. Learn how to go paperless. Ways to Reuse Use Both Sides Always try to use both sides of the paper for printing and writing. Duplex printers are able to print double-sided pages. If you have paper with print on one side, keep it to use as scratch paper. Use as Packing Material Used office paper works great as packing material to protect items during shipping or storage. Did You Know? Almost All Office Waste Is Paper In the office there can be a lot of paper waste because of reprints, bad photocopies and all of those paper memos. 90 percent of all waste produced by the average office is paper. The average office worker produces two pounds of paper and paperboard products every day. Why Shredded Paper Can Be Hard to Recycle Shredding a piece of paper shortens its fibers, which limits its recycling potential and reduces its value. Shredded paper is too small to be processed by some recyclers. It slips through sorting machinery onto the facility floor, where it gets swept up as trash.
