The Paper Facts You Should Know To Support Your Sustainability Goals

It is estimated that 50% of a business’s waste is paper, which is why businesses across every industry are reviewing their sustainability efforts and setting goals for their sustainability journey.

Take a look at 27 fascinating facts about paper, paper waste and recycled paper that we think you should know to help drive your sustainability goals.

Facts About Paper

1. One document is photocopied 19 times in its lifespan

2. 380 gallons of oil are used for every ton of paper produced

3. More than 199 tons of paper is produced in 15 seconds

4. 324 litres of water is used to make 1 kilogram of paper

5. Paper can be categorised into seven types: printing paper, writing paper, drawing paper, wrapping paper, handmade paper, blotting paper, and speciality paper

6. The number of junk mail delivered every year can be equated to 100 million trees

7. An average office worker is said to use around 10,000 sheets of paper each year (and as many as 6,800 of those sheets are wasted)

8. It takes around 10 litres of water to make just one sheet of A4 paper

9. The world currently uses around 400 million tons of paper per year

Figures About Paper Waste

1. With the amount of paper wasted each year, a 12-foot-high wall of paper could be built from New York to California

2. North Americans and Europeans use more than 200kg of paper each per year

3. The average family in the UK throws away 6 trees worth of paper every year

4. The average person in the UK gets through 38 Kg of newspaper every year

5. Every year, people in the UK use 12.5 million tons of paper and cardboard

6. In the UK, a forest the size of Wales is needed to produce all the paper being used

7. Paper and cardboard account for one-fifth of all waste produced in the UK

8. 40% of the UK population still use paper-based communication

9. About 45% of paper used in offices, be it for printing or other uses ends up in the bin

Recycled Paper in Numbers

1. Paper fibre can typically be recycled between 6 to 8 times

2. 1 ton of new fibre paper consumes 24 trees but 1 ton of 100% recycled paper consumes 0 trees

3. Recycling paper requires 30% of the electrical energy and 70% of the water that would typically be needed to produce it from wood

4. We recycle around 80% of paper in the UK

5. Each ton of recycled paper can save 17 trees, 380 gallons of oil, three cubic yards of landfill space, 4000 kilowatts of energy, and 7000 gallons of water

6. The production of recycled paper contributes to cleaner air. Compared to the production of standard paper, recycled paper production reduces air pollution by up to 73%

7. About two-thirds of the paper we use gets to be recycled

8. It takes just 7 days to recycle a newspaper into a new one

9. All newspapers in the UK are made from 100% recycled paper

Want to Reduce Paper Use and Waste?

As part of the Xerox family, Arena is truly committed to caring for the planet and helping to create a more sustainable future. Since the 1960s, Xerox has been a proud innovator when it comes to products with sustainable benefits such as 2-sided printing, digital document management and recycled paper. We are here to make your printing environment more eco-responsible.

We are also experts in planning and implementing efficient document management systems to help businesses automate, manage, track and store digital documents to help them reduce paper use and paper waste.

Speak to our team today to discuss your requirements and discover how we can help you leverage technology to support you to achieve your sustainability goals.