Date: 03/04/2023 Shift: Q. No: 98

Paper is different from other waste produce because it comes from a sustainable resource: trees. Unlike minerals and oil used to make plastics and metals, trees are replaceable. As paper is biodegradable it does not pose as much threat to the environment when it is discarded. Today, paper is made using both unused wood fibre and used fibre that comes from waste or recycled paper.

To achieve the benefits of recycling, everybody must contribute. We need to accept a change in the quality of paper products; for example, stationery may be less white and of a rougher texture. There also needs to be support from the community for waste paper collection programmes. Not only do we need to make the paper available to collectors but it also needs to be separated into different types and sorted from contaminants such as staples, paperclips, strings and other miscellaneous items.
There are technical limitations to the amount of paper which can be recycled and some paper products cannot be collected for re-use. These include paper in the form of books and permanent records, photographic paper and paper which is badly contaminated. The four most common sources of collecting paper for recycling are factories and retail stores which gather large amounts of packaging material in which goods are delivered. Besides these, there are offices which have unwanted business documents and households which discard newspapers and packaging material.

The most important reason for recycling paper is to save trees which provide vital oxygen for the planet. Some other advantages include reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, saving of water and landfill space. Using recycled paper to make new paper reduces the number of trees that are cut down and helps to conserve natural resources. Parents can promote a clean environment and provide a healthy lifestyle to their children by teaching them about the benefits of recycling paper.