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Paper Recycling is the process of turning waste paper (post-consumer) or scrap paper (pre-consumer) into usable products. This includes separating the fibers and forming them into new sheets of paper or burning the paper for energy. filled with recycled paper, on the Hudson River in New York City]] Paper products are the largest component of Municipal Solid Waste , making up 31-38% of the composition of Landfill s in the United States Baird, Colin (2004) ''Environmental Chemistry'' (3rd ed.) p. 512. W. H. Freeman ISBN 0716748770; ''Recycling in Ohio'' . They are also the largest component of recycled materials in the United States, with 45 million tons of paper and paperboard being recycled in 2001 American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) . This means that today, about 45% of all paper and paper products are actually being recycled. Although this number does seem impressive, it has remained fairly steady with slight increases for a number of years and has never reached the 50% recycling mark set by the United StatesBaird p. 525; ''Recycling in Ohio''). Paper packaging recovery, specific to paper products used by the packaging industry, was responsible for about 74% of packaging materials recycled with 21 million pounds recycled in 1999 AF&PA . However, while the supply of post-consumer paper has remained fairly steady, the demand for it has not. “The selling price for recycled paper has been notorious for wide fluctuations” Susan E. Selke, p.111. This means that the expansion of the paper recycling industry may be stymied. PROCESS Most of the paper that is reclaimed goes through the same recycling process. First, there is a separation of the material into component fibers in water, which creates a pulp slurry; this is called resuspension. Second, this slurry goes through a cleaning to remove nonfibrous contaminants and often a detergent washing. Sometimes a third process is included, which is a de-inking of the fiber by sodium hydroxide or sodium carbonate. This often goes further into a bleaching stage, where Peroxide s or Hydrosulfites are used to make the paper appear whiter. Lastly, this clean and ready fiber is made into a new recycled paper product, either by mixing it with virgin fibers from trees or simply creating 100% recycled paper material Baird p. 524-25; Selke p. 115-16. ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS Creating recycled paper materials uses less energy and water than pulping virgin trees, and reduces water and air pollution compared to the virgin paper-making process Selke 116. However, one of the biggest problems with the process is the use of , specifically Dioxin s, that are considered to be very dangerous to the environment. RECYCLING FACTS AND FIGURES In 1999, recycling and composting activities prevented about 64 million tons of material from ending up in landfills and incinerators. Today, the United States recycles 28 percent of its waste, a rate that has almost doubled during the past 15 years. While recycling has grown in general, recycling of specific materials has grown even more drastically: 42 percent of all paper, 40 percent of all plastic soft drink bottles, 55 percent of all aluminum beer and soft drink cans, 57 percent of all steel packaging, and 52 percent of all major appliances are now recycled. In about 1986, only one curbside recycling program existed in the United States, which collected several materials at the curb. By 1998, 9,000 curbside programs and 12,000 recyclable drop-off centers had sprouted up across the nation. As of 1999, 480 materials recovery facilities had been established to process the collected materials. 1 REFERENCES |
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