Green paper

Green paper

We know that the paperless office was a marketing man's dream, never even approaching a reality. Research from the USA suggests that the "average"office creates about 1.5lb of waste paper per employee every working day. Work it out for yourself –’for a reasonably-sized office that is an awful lot of paper, and an awful lot of trees. Of course, the world is now conscious of its environmental responsibilities, and many offices will be looking at ways in which such paper usage can be handled in as environmentally-friendly a way as possible. Each ton of recycled paper saves around 17 trees, and more than 450 gallons of oil. This is, of course, in addition to the reduction in air and water pollution that inevitably results from the paper manufacturing process itself. Much of the waste is of high-grade office paper, for which there is a strong recycling demand – a powerful environmental argument.

However, besides being kind to the environment, there are also strong economic reasons for taking the management of paper waste seriously. In many organisations, waste paper is the biggest source of waste and cutting it substantially can reduce waste management bills by 50 per cent or more.

There are essentially three ways in which this can be approached –reduction, re-use, and recycling.

ReductionThere are many simple ways in which the amount of paper used can be reduced. For example,office staff can be encouraged to:

• type reports using single spacing;

• use the duplex facility on printers and photocopiers to print on both sides of the paper;

• print only the number of copies needed;

• cut the number of copies needed by sharing one copy between several readers;

• place signs by the photocopier encouraging others to think about the necessity of the copies they are making;

• use the size reduction feature on printers and copiers to fit more on to each piece of paper;

• design fax cover sheets with enough space for address details and content so that separate letters or notes are not always necessary;

• edit on-screen as much as possible and avoid printing multiple drafts;

• encourage others to read e-mails on screen, rather than printing them out;and

• store information electronically rather than as hard copy.

Re-useFollowing reduction,consider ways in which paper can be re-used. For example, use re-usable or two way envelopes, and keep waste paper (yes, there will still be some!) for telephone messages, memos, etc.

RecyclingSet up a recycling programme. This may be in partnership with a specialist company that can supply clearly identified, recycling bins (and deal with the material put into them),posters and other promotional material, staff awareness/training programmes, and a monitoring and management regime.

A simple, phased programme might consist of the following steps:

• 1.

  Appoint a re-cycling co-ordinator to design and manage the programme, and liaise with managers, employees, and any external contractors.

• 2.

  Analyse waste material to determine what is, and what is not, recyclable.

• 3.

  Research the Web and make contact externally to identify, and make contact with, relevant consultants, contractors, and local and national government bodies.

• 4.

  In consultation with these agencies, put together and introduce a re-cycling programme.

• 5.

  Promote the programme and show that it has the backing of senior managers. Explain why it is being introduced and how people can help.

• 6.

  Monitor the programme to ensure that it is effective.