Each year, more than 2 billion books, 350 million magazines, and 24 billion newspapers are published. The average American uses approximately one 100-foot-tall Douglas fir tree worth of paper and wood products annually. Across the United States, close to 35% of the solid waste collected by municipalities is made up of paper products. These days, most cities and towns have regular recycling days, and most schools, businesses, government agencies, and municiple buildings have recycling programs in place.

But what happens to the recycled paper? Paper that is clean and dry (be it from magazines, old telephone directories, cereal boxes, shopping bags, books, newspaper, or cardboard containers) can be turned into fibers that can be used to make new paper products. In 2007, nearly 37% of the fiber used to make new paper products came from recycled fiber.* This is great, but this number could be greater if the demand for recycled paper increased.

There are things everyone can do to increase the demand for recycled paper. If you make purchasing decisions in your home, school, or office, always buy paper with the highest recycled content that your project and budget will allow (ironically, recycled paper can cost up to 10% more than its virgin counterpart). Send notes (on recycled paper of course), email, or call magazines and newspapers you subscribe to requesting that they use recycled paper. (For more ideas, see http://www.conservatree.org/learn/CanDo.shtml.)

*Source: http://www.epa.gov/osw/conserve/materials/paper/faqs.htm