Eliminate Junk Mail

I always receive so much unnecessary mail everyday, ranging anywhere from magazine and credit card offers to random college applications! They go straight into my recycling bin, and trust me, the bin is pretty full at the end of the week. Even though I recycle, it would be better for the environment if I didn't receive the materials in the first place.

Global Stewards has a great article about getting rid of these junk mail offers. Here's the gist of it:

1. To remove your address from the list of many companies for up to five years, contact the Direct Marketing Assocation. You can go to this website to find out how.
2. Call up companies directly to ask to be removed from their mailing lists: Val-Pak Coupons (1-800-676-6878), America Online Discs (1-800-827-6364), and Publisher's Clearinghouse Sweepstakes (1-800-645-9242).
3. Call and ask your credit card company to stop selling out your name!
4. Try not to fill out contest cards.
   

Here are some surprising impacts of junk mail:

1. 50% of all junk mail is thrown away without being open (you hear that, mailing companies?)
2. 100 million trees were consumed to produce U.S. junk mail for one year. Now that is just ridiculous.
3. The average adult spends 70 hours each year dealing with junk mail. That's for all of you that can't seem to find enough time on your hands to do everything!
4. Junk mail produces more greenhouse gas emissions than 2.8 million cars. Again, unbelievable.

When I'm out in the world on my own, I will be sure to cancel all junk mail and save myself the time (and temptations). Seriously, this could be a great thing to do to begin the new year off right. This image is courtesy of denvergov.org.

Reduce > Reuse > Recycle

Recycling is all the rage these days! Companies proudly label their containers with statements such as "Made of 100% recycled paper," while some people obsessively put away every scrap of plastic and paper into the green bins. However, there are strategies even better than recycling for the environment.

Many people do not think of it, but recycling does require additional energy to process. Fossil fuels are needed to break down the old material, remix, and reshape the final product. The reason why recycling is better than throwing away is because first of all, there is no need to extract more of the material (paper from trees, etc.), and second, landfills don't get further clogged.

Reusing is a strategy that eliminates one step from the process. Of course, you have the initial manufacturing of the product, but you don't have the whole extra processes related to recycling. Items easy to reuse:

• Small plastic snack baggies


• Paper bags


• Glass jars


• Cans (Be creative! Pencil holders, anyone?


• Paper (Use the back of that scrap piece as your shopping list)

Reducing and reusing go hand in hand. If you reuse certain items, you obviously will reduce the amount you buy. Reducing is the best strategy environmentally, because since you cut down on the amount you consume, you skip both the recycling process and the intial manufacturing process. So, do you really need two paper towels for that little spill? Can you use two sides of the paper when writing? Little changes like those really can reduce the amount you buy.

You can't reduce everything, but what you can't reduce, you most of the time can reuse, and what you can't reuse, hopefully you can recycle. A combination of these strategies will lead to a more sustainable lifestyle.

This image is from the Penwith District Council.