Paper recycling is the circular process of turning old, used paper into new paper. This recycling and making process is called papermaking. Paper is made of wood fibres, which are 100% natural and can be used over and over again. Since this is the case, paper waste is the most important part of making new paper and cardboard products.
There are three main kinds of paper waste:
Household waste paper is a mix of old newspapers, printer paper, magazines, junk mail, and packaging made of paperboard.
Brown corrugated cardboard from boxes or cardboard packaging is a type of cardboard waste. Find out more about how to recycle cardboard, step by step.
A confidential waste sheet of paper is paper that has sensitive information, like personal information, printed on it. Most of these paper recycling processes go into a machine that shreds paper. The tissue industry uses this shredded waste paper as an important resource.
The types of paper that can be recycled depending on the laws in your area and the rules of the recycling company. Most important is that the material is clean and free of things like grease, paint, or glue that could make it dirty. Here is a list of some of the most common paper items that can be recycled.
- Cardboard\sNewspaper\sMagazines\sCatalogs
- Address books
- Paperboard containers
- Envelopes for receipts made of white office paper
- Make sure to take out any private information, like your address, before you throw it away to be recycled.
Paper recycling might seem like something that should be done by professionals, but did you know that you can recycle your own paper at home? You can get rid of junk mail, used printer paper, or old newspapers while making something unique and hand-made.
What You Need to Know
It doesn’t matter what kind of paper you use, just don’t use glossy paper like magazines.
Water
- A food processor or blender
- A picture frame you already have or wood to make your own
- Screen or mesh (together with the frame, this will make your paper mould)
- Fabric, sponge, or felt
- A square or rectangular container for water (it needs to be bigger than your frame)
- Seeds, dried flowers, or confetti can be used as decorations (optional)
How to make your own paper can be found in a lot of places online. Make Something has a video tutorial, and Instructables has both written and photo instructions. To give you a general idea of how the process works, we’ll briefly explain it.
Main Steps
1. Tear the paper into small pieces and blend with warm water. Blend the ingredients until the paper fibres are smooth. If you want to add colour dots, add pieces of coloured paper at this point and blend them in a little.
2. Put your “mould” together. You can use duct tape, staples, or any other method that will keep the screen stuck to the edges of the frame to attach it to the frame. The second piece of the screen will be used later in the process.
3. Put your mould in your bin or pan of water, and then pour the pulp into the mould. (If you lift up the mould, the pulp should cover the screen.) To make paper that can be planted, you can now add decorations like dried flowers or grass, a splash of paint, or even seeds. Make sure to add a little more pulp to cover the decorations so they stick to the paper.
4. Take the mould out of the water and put the second piece of screen on top of the pulp. Use a towel or sponge to press out excess water.
5. When you lift the screen, the paper should come up with it. Now, turn the screen over on a towel so that the pulp side is down. Use a sponge or cloth to press on the screen side to get more water out.
Then, take the screen off the paper and put it on a towel to dry. To speed up the drying time, you can put a paper towel over it and press it with an iron.
What kinds of paper can’t be reused?
At the recycling facility, not every kind of paper waste can be recycled. Here is a list of different kinds of paper that can’t be recycled.
Paper that is coated and treated
- Used pizza boxes, paper plates, and paper cups all have food waste on them.
- Tissue paper, towels, and napkins
- Paper that has been laminated, waxed, or covered with foil
- Paper that is dirty or has oil, grease, or chemicals on it
- Used wallpaper with glue left on it.
Waste paper that was shred
Instead of making paper, shredded paper is often used by the tissue industry as a source of materials.
Is paper biodegradable?
Biodegradable paper is made from only plants and nothing else. Laminated paper is not completely biodegradable.
Does all new paper come from old paper?
No, paper mills make paper from both recycled paper and new fibres. This makes a strong paper that can be used to make new things out of paper.
Why is it so important to recycle paper?
Recycling paper is good for the environment and the planet in many ways:
Recycling paper saves space in dumps.
- cuts down on how much water and energy are used. This means that 28% to 70% less energy is used than virgin paper.
- It saves resources and forests because it uses used paper instead of cutting down trees.
- When it is made, recycled paper produces less pollution than paper made from trees.
- Cuts down on glasshouse gas emissions and the carbon footprint.
- So that recycled paper can be used as a raw material for making more paper, it is important to sort paper by where it came from and collect it from homes.
- This means that every citizen is very important to the success of recycling and making paper and to getting a high percentage of a paperback.
Is used paper good for the environment?
Yes, paper made from used materials is better for the environment than paper made from new materials. It uses less energy than making paper from fresh trees.
It saves wood, which makes the water cleaner. Recycled paper also helps save trees because it cuts down on the need for wood. This stops trees from being cut down and lowers the carbon footprint.
What to do with paper shreds?
The tissue business needs shredded paper as a key resource.
But how do the people who make tissues get the shredded paper?
Tissues are made from paper scraps that have been torn up to make long rolls of continuous sheets or wrapping paper.
Companies that shred paper makes it easy for businesses and people to shred their papers safely. Large industrial shredder machines are used by these companies to shred large amounts of private documents. You can either drop off your documents or have them picked up at your office.
The shredded material is put into bales, which are then sold and sent to the companies that make tissues. Toilet paper, paper towels, and other paper hygiene products are made in the tissue industry.
