Reducing Paper Waste

Last week we planted trees to celebrate Georgia's Arbor Day. The goal of planting these flowering species was to attract pollinators, which have been on the decline in recent decades, threatening the world's food supply.

When I think of trees, I also think of products we derive from them. Like paper. And how much paper is wasted every day. And how many trees could be saved if we didn't waste so much paper.

So here are some tips to minimize the amount of paper we waste:

·        Resist the urge to print out every email you receive. I once had a boss who did that. Detailed directions, prep for an upcoming meeting, a completed progress report, I could see. A phone number? Confirmation of a lunch date? Why waste a clean sheet of paper, as well as printer ink? Jot it down on a piece of scratch paper. A simple joke or daily platitude? Read and delete. In the mountains of paper you're keeping, you'll never find it again anyway.

·        Capacity for electronic storage is increasing, especially with The Cloud. Handle electronically as much bill paying, record keeping, and correspondence as possible. (But do pay attention to cybersecurity, and make it a habit to back up your data regularly.).  At the Fayette Humane Society where I volunteer, we used to spend close to $2000 every quarter to produce and distribute our 8-page newsletter, complete with color photos. Converting to electronic distribution was met with a lot of resistance, but we finally did it. The money we save is better spent on caring for the animals we rescue.

·        Print on both sides of a sheet of paper whenever possible. Some writers find it impossible to edit on the computer. If you must print out your drafts to find errors, why not use both sides of the page? If your printer doesn't do "double-sided," print on the back of old draft copies.

·        Don't waste a clean sheet of printer paper to jot down a reminder or make a grocery list. Why not recycle a junk-mail envelope, or use one of those free notepads sent by charities?

·        Print out directions, hotel confirmations, and boarding passes on recycled paper. The TSA agent won't care that the back of your e-ticket contains a marked-up excerpt from your novel-in-progress.

·        Shred no-longer-needed documents and use them for packaging or to line a birdcage. Or donate to an animal shelter as a puppy-pad substitute.

Reducing paper waste not only helps the environment, it can save you money. And there's nothing like financial motivation to do the right thing.

What tips do you have for saving money on paper? I'd love to hear your comments.

Sharon Marchisello is the author of Live Cheaply, Be Happy, Grow Wealthy.