Sobering facts from American Forest and Paper Association:

• We use about 700 pounds of paper per person per year.
• We recycle about 346 pounds of paper per person per year.
• That means each person throws out about a pound of paper in their trash can every day!

That's a very big deficit! We all know ways we can cut down paper consumption in our lives, and hopefully we are employing all or most of them:

• Bring reusable cloth bags when we shop to avoid getting throwaway plastic or paper bags
• Buy paper with recycled content at the office store
• Print on both sides of the paper, and only when necessary
• Buy toilet paper with recycled content
• Use rewashable cloth instead of paper products in your kitchen
• Ask companies to remove your address from their mailing lists if you do not want their catalogs or solicitations in your mail

And now I'd like to suggest adding hand papermaking to your list. It's a fun way to recycle your junk mail and other discarded papers, and use the sheets for writing paper or for crafts. Hopefully you will find this website helpful and inspiring!