Essential Guide To Carbon Savings Through Paper Recycling
In line with increasingly stringent Government targets to reduce the UKs carbon footprint
through improved waste management, statistics have shown that by recycling 1 tonne of paper and cardboard, 1.4 tonnes of harmful carbon generation will be avoided compared to sending this waste to landfill. Whats more, it would amount to a reduction of 0.62 tonnes of carbon emissions compared to incineration.
This has been confirmed with an international study by the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), which measured the carbon emissions produced from paper recycling as opposed to less Green disposal options.
Nevertheless, while businesses are starting to understand the cost savings and eco-friendly benefits of recycling their paper and cardboard, getting to grips with efficient waste management can be tricky.
The following guide will explore the eco-friendly advantages of paper recycling over disposal, plus help your organisation understand how carbon savings are calculated.
Ecological Benefits of Paper ; Cardboard Recycling Over Disposal
Currently in Great Britain, experts estimate that approximately 90% of the nations residual waste is disposed of at landfills, while 10% is incinerated. If this waste was recycled instead of discarded, WRAP has predicted that a saving of 1.32 tonnes of carbon dioxide could be made per tonne. In addition, as recycling technology improves, the figure would be even more impressive.
While paper and cardboard materials are biodegradable, what many people dont know is that when they are dumped at landfill and start to break down they create methane, a type of Greenhouse gas that is widely recognised as a dangerous contributor to climate change. Furthermore, since paper is also carbon-based, it releases carbon dioxide when incinerated, which is another climate change risk. Thus, from an ecological point of view, the advantages of recycling paper and cardboard have a significantly positive impact on the planet.
In contrast, by recycling the cardboard and paper waste products your business generates, their carbon content is retained for longer plus there is also less demand for trees (the primary fibre requirement in the industry). This not only improves the sustainability of the paper sector, it helps ensure the longevity of forests, which in turn generate the vital oxygen that is needed for life on earth.
How Carbon Savings are Measured
To calculate The Green Factor when it comes to reducing carbon emissions through recycling, you need to measure the cost savings to be had by substituting primary raw materials (brand new) with secondary raw materials that have been recycled. You also need to look at the energy efficiency benefits that come from the reprocessing stage as opposed to manufacturing new materials.
Recycled materials such as glass, steel and aluminium offer significant savings because once they are used in the manufacturing of finished products, they perform just as well as secondary raw materials, but at a much reduced cost.
When it comes to paper and cardboard materials however, it is much trickier to calculate a specific carbon saving on an overall material basis than for other product sectors. The reason for this is that paper manufacturing is extremely varied in terms of production processes, raw materials, energy sources, output product groups and locations.
To address this fickle situation, the Confederation of European Paper Industries (CEPI) has created a standardised framework for paper manufacturers to measure their carbon footprints more accurately.
Nevertheless, it is up to the paper industry sector and individual companies to arrive at a figure based on their own unique circumstances. Only then can businesses who buy paper products get clear details about the carbon footprint of these product types.
This complex predicament makes it difficult for the paper industry to supply the Government, local authorities and company owners with a specific number associated with recycling so that they can concisely calculate their carbon performance while recycling paper products.
Based on the WRAP study mentioned above however, even the generalised figures that the research revealed show a massive carbon benefit from recycling paper and cardboard as opposed to disposing of it.
Boost Your Paper Recycling with a Baler
Now that I have demonstrated the carbon saving advantages of paper and cardboard recycling, a final point to help your business streamline your waste management is to use a baler these can be bought or even affordably hired and there are a range of models to suit every organisations size and waste stream needs. The advantages of balers are summarised as follows:
Most effective space saving method of storing paper and cardboard waste.
More cost effective since waste volume is reduced which minimises the fees you pay for rubbish removal.
An added revenue earner as recycling companies pay for baled paper and cardboard according to weight, not size.
Neat, compact bales can be transported much easier to the recycling centre.
Conclusion
Cardboard and
paper recycling is not only becoming necessary to minimise the ever increasing landfill costs that the Government plans to introduce, it is definitely the way forward in terms of business efficiency and reducing your organisations carbon footprint.
by: George Rebstrum
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