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More frequently office are moving towards the idea of sustainability. Whether it be the office building itself with LEED certification or by simply reducing prin frequency, there are many ways that an office space can become environmentally friendly.
There is an emerging market in the paper world and that is for recycled paper. While many offices already are trying to go more digital to reduce their printing costs, they do have the option to go one step further and purchase recycled printer paper for their printing needs.
Recycling paper the basics
If there is one thing you can expect when switching over to recycled paper, that is to pay more. The good thing is that the industry is thriving and therefore it’s easy to find and you can explore a variety of brand options. Some environmentally conscious offices may find their printing costs reduced by the switch to recycled paper because they are more wholly focused on being green and that means less print jobs.
In order for paper to become recycled paper it must go through a pulping and de-inking process. There are a few ways to treat the paper, one method uses heavy chlorine and chlorine compounds, this method is generally frowned upon within the eco-industry. Another method is dispersing where the ink dissolves into the pulp, this means the finished paper product is not 100% white. The other more popular methods include; washing the paper with soap during the pulp process and flotation which sees air pushed into the pulp to produce a foam that can later be scraped off along with the ink.
Why should you use recycled paper?
When you consider that 90% of North America’s print paper is still produced from trees and that 17 trees could be saved for every 20 cases of paper, the argument for looks good. An office who switches to recycle paper contribute to helping reduce landfill waste, saving parts of global forests and help to continue the eco-friendly recycling movement.
Aside from the environmental benefits recycled paper has come a long way, quality and price wise it is now on par with virgin paper.
What are the known disadvantages of using recycled paper?
Some critics question the environmental impact of the bleaching chemicals used on recycled paper. They also question the availability of fiber to make pulp for the paper and whether the cost of energy to make the paper out ways the cost to cut down forestry. These are all valid concerns.
Recycled paper use is still a new concept for many offices but it is another step towards transforming your office into a sustainable one. Brock Office Automation focuses one educating it’s customers on the environmental impacts of office machines, follow this link to learn more about how to safely recycle your office equipment.
