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"paper" is a broad category of garbage. Newspapers are worth recycling, because they can be turned into new newspapers again, removing the ink and the metal ca
by henrikschroder 7y ago
"paper" is a broad category of garbage.
Newspapers are worth recycling, because they can be turned into new newspapers again, removing the ink and the metal can be done fairly efficiently.
Cardboard can be recycled fairly efficiently, and can be turned into new cardboard.
Plastic-covered/glued/glossy/window envelopes/food containers/other contaminated papers can't be recycled. Just incinerate it, or turn it into pellet fuel and incinerate it.
- dillonmckay 7y agoHow much energy does it take to recycle newsprint into blank newsprint? What chemicals are involved in that process? Is cardboard similar? Does this take into account the logistics costs?
- henrikschroder 7y agoThe alternative to recycling newspaper and cardboard is chopping down forests and turning them into pulp, a process that also needs a lot more logistics, chemicals, energy, and of course forests that you have to re-plant. Recycling newspaper is a no-brainer from a cost perspective. You can't recycle forever though, each time you lose some wood fibers that are too short and have to be removed from the recycled pulp, so you have to add fresh pulp.
- aeternus 7y agoPretty much all paper manufacturers are now require to plant more trees than they cut down. Burying old newspapers in the ground is a form of carbon sequestration. Really it comes down to what takes less energy: cutting down the trees, or the transport, sorting and reprocessing of old newspapers.
- henrikschroder 7y agoUpthread someone quoted a study that showed recycling newspaper used 60% of the energy compared to cutting down trees and making pulp. So like I said, it's a no-brainer to recycle newspapers.
- deleted 7y ago[deleted]