With many tree-free, eco-friendly alternatives available, here are some options available to reduce our reliance on trees and hopefully reduce the 40 percent of paper products that make up landfills. Many of the alternative papers are not bleached at all or use sustainable oxygen-compounds for processing. For journals, notepads, postcards, stationery and gift cards, seemingly exotic and earthy options are plentiful and varied like hemp-based paper that is 100 percent wood free. Small businesses are starting to produce these items using natural materials and fibers from cotton, banana, tobacco, citrus, coffee bean, bamboo, bagasse, and recycled fabrics. Post-consumer waste, recycled toilet paper is readily available with increasing options made from bamboo and even sugar cane fibers. Choose tissue that is free of dyes, fragrances, or coloring. For bathroom tissue, check that is made from 100 percent-recycled content and at least 20 percent post-consumer waste [31]. For paper towels, it should also be 100 percent-recycled content with at least 40 percent post-consumer waste. Also pay attention to packaging, choosing a brand that uses recycled materials or material that can be recycled …show more content…
In schools, kids use laptops and tablets to take notes and complete assignments and tests. And certain cafés and shops email receipts to customers. We’ve already taken baby steps towards a paperless society, so what if paper was ultimately removed from our world? In the U.S. alone, 69 million tons of paper is used every year. Only 50% of this paper is recycled, and the rest ends up cluttering landfills [32]. Alternatives to paper are already part of our daily lives: e-books, digital advertisements, credit cards, e-tickets, etc. More recently, contactless credit cards, which do not need to be inserted into a reader to process a payment, are pushing things a step further and eliminate the need to withdraw cash when you have no coins. Water-shoots in toilets could eventually mean we won’t need toilet paper or paper-based packaging anymore. Many airlines and train companies already allow travellers to register their boarding pass on their phone or on their loyalty