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).

Organisations like the Paper Recycling Association of South Africa (RecyclePaperZA) are working towards a ‘recycling-minded’ society by teaching ordinary people how they can make an extraordinary difference – with everyday items.

“Separating paper and cardboard products from home, school and office waste and keeping it aside for conversion into other products has many benefits, both for the environment and the people who make a living by collecting recyclables and selling them on to buy-back centres and paper manufacturers,” says RecyclePaperZA operations director Ursula Henneberry.

RENEWABLE AND RECYCLABLE

The paper products we come into daily contact with – ranging from office paper and newspapers, medicine boxes and magazines, juice and milk cartons to cardboard cores from toilet rolls – can all be recycled.

They are also completely renewable because, at some point, their fibre would have come from sustainably and responsibly farmed trees that are planted, grown, harvested and replanted in cycles.

Recycling also keeps the carbon originally stored in the wood fibre of trees locked in paper products and out of the atmosphere for longer.

Unfortunately large quantities of paper still end up in landfills, which are rapidly running out of space, and add to greenhouse gas emissions when paper decomposes with other waste.

“During 2014, 64% of recoverable paper was recycled, 2% more than in 2013 and 5% more than in 2012,” says Henneberry. “For every tonne of paper recycled, up to three cubic metres of landfill space is saved – land that could be better used for housing, agriculture and infrastructure. During 2014, South Africans recycled 1.1 million tonnes, enough to fill 1,276 Olympic-sized swimming pools.”

But we need to do more. It is estimated that only 5% of households recycle paper.

RecyclePaperZA advises that householders keep recyclables aside for an informal collector who walks your neighbourhood every week. “This increases the quality of the recyclables, allowing the collector to earn a little more.”

TRASH IS TREASURE

“In a country with high unemployment rates and accompanying poverty, paper recycling is becoming a source of revenue for a growing number of people. An estimated 35,000 people put food on their tables by walking the streets to collect ‘waste’ in return for cash or work for larger companies to recover, sort and weigh recyclables for conversion into usable and commercially viable products.

The pulp and paper manufacturing industry is a key sector in the South African economy. Importantly, it employs a workforce of more than 150,000 people across the value chain – from forestry, to pulp and paper manufacturing to informal collectors. These people in turn collectively feed, clothe and school around 900,000 dependants.

“Companies that produce paper products run major mills specifically designed to turn today’s phonebooks, magazines, notepads, company minutes, milk cartons and cereal boxes into tomorrow’s egg containers, corrugated boxes and board, newspapers and tissue products,” states Henneberry.

“Some 65% of recovered paper is used as fibre, without which these mills would stand idle, unable to manufacture the pulp used to produce materials for products manufactured in South Africa and exported around the world.”

You can get involved by separating all kinds of refuse, starting with paper and moving on to plastics, glass and cans.

Paper products you can recycle:

• all office paper
• coloured paper
• newspaper, magazines (even glossy ones)
• catalogues, phonebooks
• direct marketing leaflets
• cardboard packaging of all kinds, shapes and sizes – boxes used for moving; electronics, shoes, gifts and cereal
• paper towel and toilet paper cores
• food packaging (unwaxed only please)
• shredded paper (in plastic bag to minimize blow-away)
• milk, juice and liquid cartons (should be empty)
• books: all soft cover, hard or plastic covers should be ripped off
• pizza boxes (food and wax paper removed)
• brown paper bags

Remember, paper should be separated from wet waste so it does not get contaminated.

Paper products you shouldn’t recycle

• Tissue paper and paper towel
• Wax paper
• Used cement and dog food bags
• Disposable nappies
• Plastic lined papers
• Foil lined papers

RECYCLING PROGRAMMES

• Visit mywaste.co.za for programmes in your area.
  • Enrol in a free kerbside collection programme.
  • Find a drop-off centre near your home or office, usually at local shopping centres.
• Check with local community centres, places of worship or schools if they have a paper recycling programme from which they benefit financially.
• Contract the services of a small recycling business.

Clean-up SA and Recycle Week takes place between September 14 and 18, and National Recycling Day is celebrated on Friday, September 18. International Coastal Clean-up Day takes place on Saturday, 19 September.

The post Discover the treasure in your trash first appeared on The Paper Story (PAMSA).

It is estimated that only 5% of South African households recycle their paper and cardboard. So what is the other 95% doing with it?

A significant amount of recyclable paper is going to landfill every year. This paper degrades along with other food waste, adding to the levels of greenhouse gases in the air we breathe. Methane is 20 times more potent than carbon dioxide. In some cases, paper is incinerated, also causing air pollution.

By recycling paper, the carbon (originally stored by trees in the wood fibre) remains ‘locked up’ – and out of the atmosphere – for longer. It also saves landfill space. In 2013 1,2 million tonnes of paper were collected for recycling saving 3,5 million cubic metres of landfill space – the equivalent of 1,403 Olympic-sized swimming pools.

So this National Recycling Day – 19 September 2014 – why not make a commitment to start recycling paper?

Here are a few tips from the Paper Recycling Association of South Africa to get you started:
• Invest a paper-only bin or box in your home or office for easy recycling.

• Keep your paper clean and dry.

• Not all paper can be recycled so get to know your recyclables.

− Recyclable: magazines (including the glossy variety), newspapers, brochures, office paper, shredded paper, cardboard (cereal boxes, toothpaste boxes, medicine boxes, pizza boxes, tissue boxes) and cartonboard, liquid board packaging including beverage and food cartons.

− Not recyclable: wet, soiled paper such as used paper plates, disposable nappies, tissues and toilet paper; foil, gift wrapping, carbon paper; wax-coated, foil-lined or laminated boxes; used cement and dog food bags.

• Find a recycling collection programme or drop-off point near you by visiting www.mywaste.co.za. Many schools and community organisations earn money from recyclable paper collection. Support these initiatives.

• Support job creation by keeping your recyclables aside for an informal collector who walks your neighbourhood every week. This increases the quality of the recyclables and the collector could earn a little more for better quality.

• Don’t let the recycling pile get too big before you drop it off – keep a box/crate in your boot so you can do a weekly drop-off when you do your shopping or run other errands.

• Always keep in mind that you are recycling for a good reason – the future of our planet. This should be motivation enough to keep you going!
For more information on paper and paper recycling, visit www.thepaperstory.co.za. You can also follow @PaperRocks_SA on Twitter.

The post Clear the air by recycling paper 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).

For instance, the recent Pew State of the News Media study notes that 23% of people aged 18-24 reported reading a newspaper yesterday. As a Millennial myself, I was slightly skeptical. Were these 18-24 year olds just confused about what a newspaper is? Further evidence confirms the existence of young people looking to print: The New York Times reports that 10% of its hard copy subscribers are aged 18-24, which is on par with the 9% of this age cohort who subscribe digitally.

NPR Research has access to GfK MRI’s nationwide data, collected through extensive in-person surveys, which indicates that newspaper readership is even more widespread among young adults than these statistics suggest. I looked up the exact question respondents were asked in this survey so I could be sure that Millennials were not mistaking “noticing a pile of newspapers at Starbucks” for “reading a newspaper.” It turns out that survey respondents were asked to cite newspapers they had read or looked into, on printed paper. They were specifically reminded that neither electronic copies nor the newspaper’s website count as printed paper. Neither does a tablet or mobile device. Still, most Millennials insist that they read newspapers!

Millennials keep pace with total US adults until it comes to comparing the number of heavy readers. Less than a quarter of Millennials (22%) are reading newspapers at least every other day, compared to 40% of adults overall. However 52% of them are getting their hands (and eyes) on a newspaper at least once a month and up to fourteen times a month.

Heavy newspaper readers (groups I and II) are 75% more likely than light/non readers (groups IV and V) to hold a graduate degree. Heavy readers are also more than twice as likely to be considered “Influentials,” meaning people who participate in three or more public engagement activities every year (such as writing a letter to an elected official, running for public office, or attending a public meeting). These young adults are keyed into civic life and, in a crowded media marketplace, apparently prioritize carving out time to read a print newspaper.

As we have seen in the video, “Baby Thinks Magazine Is a Broken iPad,” the next generation may need some instruction in print media appreciation. However, evidence points to the fact that, while they may prefer their digital devices, most Millennials know how to turn a physical printed page, and I will raise my morning coffee and paper to that.

Written by: Katy Pape – an intern with Audience Insight & Research.

Source: www.npr.org

The post Millennials and Print Newspaper: A Surprising Story. first appeared on The Paper Story (PAMSA).