Materials:

• Scissors, stapler, glue or double-sided tape, hole punch
• One litre milk or juice carton with a spout
• Construction paper (pastel colors); Pipe cleaners; Cotton ball (optional)

Instructions

1.  Have an adult cut a panel from the carton (with the spout) and save it to later make a handle. Staple the open spout closed.
2. Use construction paper to cover the carton (you can use glue or tape).
3. Use the hole punch in the center of the spout ridge to create a spot where the whiskers go. Place the pipe cleaners in the holes, then glue on the googly eyes.
4. Next, the bunny needs ears. Cut ear shapes from the same color construction paper, then cut smaller ear shapes (pink) to glue on to the middle of the ears. Staple the ears on the top of the base so that they stand up.
5. Finally, create the handle by trimming the cut carton side, covering it with construction paper, and stapling it to the basket!
6. Add the finishing touch of gluing a cotton ball to the tail of the bunny basket.

Source: http://blog.austinkids.org/tag/easter/

REMEMBER THAT MILK AND JUICE CARTONS ARE ALSO RECYCLABLE. Rinse, flatten and place with your paper recycling!

The post Cute Easter milk carton baskets first appeared on The Paper Story (PAMSA).

The Paper Recycling Association of South Africa (RecyclePaperZA) calls on all South Africans – from schoolchildren to pensioners – to do their bit by recycling paper products at school, home and work for drop-off at local recycling depots or gathering by collectors who earn a living by selling it back to mills.

“Paper and cardboard are items we touch and use every day – in the kitchen and bathroom, in the classroom and at the office – from printed copy paper, magazines, flyers and newspapers to cereal boxes and juice and milk cartons,” says RecyclePaperZA operations director Ursula Henneberry. “Millions of people choose to recycle every day, which helps the local paper industry to make lots of new products and create meaningful employment.”

“Ordinary people don’t have much control over pressing global environmental challenges and their capacity to help solve these issues is limited. However, the one thing that we can all do to make a difference is recycle,” she adds.

The benefits are numerous, and it just takes a little bit of effort to develop “good garbage habits”.

GOLDEN RULES FOR PAPER RECYCLING

As a starting point, it is important to remember paper recycling’s five golden rules:

• Get to know what paper products are recyclable and which are not.
• Separate your recyclables from wet waste. Paper items that are wet (used paper plates) or soiled (tissues and disposable nappies) cannot be recycled.
• Take a second to separate any non-paper packaging from paper or cardboard.
• Always keep paper clean and dry as this ensures a quality fibre for use in making new products.
• Invest in or make a paper-only bin or box for easy sorting.

RECYCLING AT HOME:

• Space permitting, you may want to have a few paper bins around the house.
• Decide what you want to do with your recyclables – have them collected or drop them off?
• Strike up a conversation with a waste collector in your suburb and make an arrangement to have them collect your paper and cardboard on a convenient day.
• Keep a box or crate in your car so that you can do a weekly drop-off on the way to work or run other errands.
• Make family, friends and visitors aware that you recycle.

AT SCHOOL:

• Enrol in a paper recycling programme and raise funds for your school.
• Actively encourage parents to drop off their recycling during their school runs.
• Place clearly marked, brightly coloured recycling receptacles in classrooms and on the school grounds.
• Contact RecyclePaperZA for a presentation to share the value of recycling with teachers and learners.

AT WORK:

• Place paper-only bins for easy separation from other recyclables and wet waste, especially in areas where paper disposal is likely to take place – at desks, photocopiers and printers and in communal kitchens.
• Mark recycling receptacles clearly or perhaps use a colour-coding system.
• Find out what your company wants to do with recyclables – have them collected or dropped off?
• Support a local small business or informal collector by arranging for them to collect the office recyclable paper, boxes and other paper packaging.
• Make staff and visitors aware of the office-recycling programme. It may take regular education and encouragement, and some fun incentives.
•  Once you get the hang of paper recycling, start separating other recyclables, like plastic, cans and glass, aerosols and electronic waste. You could also try composting organic kitchen waste to go even greener.

Lastly, pay it forward and get friends and family to recycle too.

PAPER RECYCLING IN SOUTH AFRICA. THE NUMBERS.

• In 2014, 64% of South Africa’s recoverable paper was collected for recycling. This equated to 1.1 million tonnes, enough to fill 1,276 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
• Only 5% of households conscientiously recycle their paper.
• Recycling just a tonne of paper removes the need for three cubic metres of landfill space.

USEFUL WEBSITES

www.recyclepaper.co.za

www.mywaste.co.za

www.recycling.co.za

The post Paper recycling. Simplified. first appeared on The Paper Story (PAMSA).

The post Paper recycling: 5 Tips – The Paper Story (PAMSA) first appeared on The Paper Story (PAMSA).

“Sadly only 5% of homes actively recycle their paper and board,” says Paper Recycling Association of South Africa (RecyclePaperZA) operations director Ursula Henneberry.

National Recycling Day on Friday, 14 September, is the perfect opportunity for South Africans to take a more active role in recycling, in the home and at the workplace.

The simplest way to green our future

Paper, one of the most environmentally friendly and sustainable products, is made from farmed trees, just as your morning cereal was made from farmed wheat or corn. Plantation trees help to absorb carbon dioxide from and release life-giving oxygen into the atmosphere.

Trees, and thus paper and wood products, store this carbon as solid matter. By recycling paper, we can ensure that this carbon is kept out of the atmosphere for longer. Paper recycling is one of the simplest ways that we can green our future.

“If we do not recycle, paper will rot among other rubbish and emit greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide and methane, which is 20 times more potent than carbon dioxide,” says Henneberry.

A tonne of recycled paper can save up to three cubic metres of landfill space and subsequently reduce transport costs for local municipalities.

By recycling paper, milk and juice cartons, glass, aluminium and plastic, we contribute to less pollution and litter, and create a healthier, greener and cleaner society.

Top tips for aspiring recyclers

1. Do your research and find out which companies collect paper in your area. Visit www.mywaste.co.za for these details.
2. Do not mix your paper with other recyclables.
3. Do not let your paper get wet or soiled by other rubbish. Keep it under cover or in a closed plastic container.
4. Get to know what is recyclable and what is not. The following paper types cannot be recycled:

– Foil gift wrapping and foiled lined boxes
– Wax coated or laminated boxes such as frozen food boxes
– Empty cement and dog food bags
– Disposable nappies
– Carbon paper
– Sticky notes

1. Remember that juice, milk and custard cartons ARE recyclable. Simply rinse, flatten and place with your paper recycling.
2. Newspapers are best recycled within three months.
3. If you don’t have a formal recycling collection service or drop-off depot in your neighbourhood, consider putting your recyclables in clear plastic bags so that the people who sort through the piles of refuse on collection day are afforded some dignity by not having to trawl through your week’s household waste.

Give paper a new lease on life

Paper can be recycled up to seven times. Some virgin or new wood fibre is required to make recycled paper possible in the first place and is always needed to keep the global fibre cycle going. But have you ever wondered where recyclable paper goes or what it becomes?

• Corrugated boxes and magazines = new corrugated boxes
• Newspapers, magazines = newspapers
• Office paper, newspapers, printer offcuts = tissue products, kitchen and industrial paper towelling
• Office paper, corrugated boxes, printer offcuts, cardboard trims = cereal boxes, soap cartons
• Newspaper, cardboard trims = moulded paper products such as egg boxes.
• Milk and juice cartons = board paper.

Next time you open your grocery cupboard or medicine cabinet, think about the role that paper plays in your life in its various and versatile forms.

The post Why we should be recycling our paper first appeared on The Paper Story (PAMSA).