Here's a quick tip on one really easy thing we can do that can potentially
- Help our environment
- Boost our local economy
- Save trees
- Spend our local tax money more effectively
Are you ready to hear what this one simple thing is?
Buy recycled paper.
Yes, just buy recycled paper. How easy is that?
Background: Recycling Programs Costing Municipalities More
Normally, municipalities make a profit by selling the recyclable waste that is collected and sorted from our Blue Boxes. In the past month or so however, the revenue brought in by selling recycling material has plummeted.
According to Laura McDowell, York Region Director of Environmental Promotion and Protection "Even as recently as September, we were getting $147 a tonne. Then there was a steep drop that happened over a week".
The York Region Solid Waste Management Committee discussed a report (PDF) yesterday that looked at the changing revenue and costs of the recycling program in York Region.
One interesting point is that while paper usually generates revenue for York region, it will now actually cost money to have it taken away. The report notes that
In September 2008, mixed paper produced an average revenue value of $94 per metric tonne for York Region. For the first time ever, we will have to pay about $26 per tonne to mills to take our fibre materials.
This drop in revenue is due to softening of demand for recycled materials domestically. Usually materials would then be exported internationally, however those markets also have softened.
The Region did note that although the market for recyclable materials has changed, this will not affect the residential blue box program, which will continue to operate as usual.
Leslie Atkinson, Executive Director of York Region Environmental Alliance said that recycling "was the right thing to do for the environment and it was also economical. So what if doing the right thing costs us profits us for a little while?".
York Region is not alone in dealing with this issue. Windsor, Nova Scotia, and other communities are all experiencing similar situations.
Why Buying Recycled Paper Can Help
Sometimes it's easy to think that the little things we can do won't make much difference - but that's not the case. There are many people that already choose to use recycled products instead of paper with that "new tree scent".
By choosing to buy recycled paper products you join your buying power with theirs. When there is enough demand in the market for recycled paper, then a higher percentage of the paper in stores will be made from recycled materials.
This means potentially higher revenues for our local municipalities, helping our tax dollars be spent more effectively in our local neighbourhoods, and as time goes on potentially even a lower cost of buying recycled paper (from volume discounts).
What We Can Do
There are lots of products that we can buy that contain recycled materials, and we see them and use them every day. Consider buying a recycled product where you would usually buy virgin paper.
When we print something, we can choose recycled paper, or at least paper that is made of partially recycled materials - this can be really helpful at the office, where people tend to print more pages. There are recycled envelopes, folders, notebooks and dividers, as well as many other office supplies.
We can choose recycled paper towels and hand towels, or even bathroom tissue.
We can choose packaging that contains some recycled materials (such as some cardboard egg cartons).
We can encourage companies to use recycled paper in their mail to us. Our Bell bill has a small notice on it that certifies the paper in the bill as coming from responsibly managed forests, which is a great start. Why not encourage the companies we do business with to use recycled paper in their correspondence?
Do you have any ideas how we can encourage the use of recycled paper? Comment on this article and let people know.
Image by Sarabbit
