GreenYour.com

Whether at work, school, church, or elsewhere, printing on both sides of paper ensures that you cut your paper use nearly in half. This protects forests, avoids pollution, and saves money.

How to encourage double-sided printing at your office, church, or school

• Get your employee-run green team to establish a double-sided printing policy for the entire organization. This should include:
  • Setting defaults on all printers and copiers to duplex printing mode.
  • Ensuring computers also default to double-sided printing.
  • New equipment purchases—all new print-ready machines must include duplexing capabilities.
  • Require double-sided copy on all reports, RFPs, publications, and assignments submitted to your staff.
• Post clever signs at all printers, copiers, and fax machines encouraging people to reduce paper waste by double-siding. Choose pre-designed options or make your own!
• Advertise the double-sided printing policy through email reminders and meeting announcements.

Printing on both sides of paper helps you go green because...

• It can cut your home or office paper use nearly in half.
• Using less paper means healthier forests and decreased pollution.

The average American goes through hundreds of pounds of paper each year;[1] the average office worker uses 1.5 pounds of paper every day.[2] Choosing to double-side paper can reduce the amount of paper Americans use by nearly 50 percent. This not only saves trees, but also money, and not only in terms of buying less paper, but also potentially reducing storage, copying, printing, postage, disposal, and recycling costs.[3]

Believing there to be significant potential benefits to changing paper-use policies, Warner Bros. Studios developed paper management guidelines as part of its recycling program in 1992. The program included buying recycled content paper and double-siding most printed documents, including scripts. This has saved the organization tons of paper, which is ultimately recycled after use.[4]

External links

• Conservatree - Source Reduction Practices
• Natural Resources Defense Council - How to Create a Smart Paper Plan for Your Business Toolkit Contains sample memos, questionnaires, paper reduction worksheets, signage, and other helpful tips and resources.
• US Department of Energy - Cutting Paper: Ideas - What are Duplexing Rates?