Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Surterre Green Tip: Go Paperless



Going paperless is one of the more convenient and easy ways to flex your "green" muscles, and while seemingly simple and efficient, by using virtual technology, you not only help the environment by saving trees and helping cut down on waste, but you can also help to declutter your life and your surroundings, and gain security for your personal and confidential information.

The creation of paper not only destroys trees and forests, but it also uses an exorbitant amount of water, and releases unhealthful chemical dioxins--some of which have are known to cause cancer--into our air and rivers. A good deal this paper often shows up in our homes in the form of bills, statements and checks.
According to a 2007 study by the US Postal Service, "About 44 percent of First Class Mail received by households is bills and statements. In FY 2007, households received 18.8 billion bills." If 20 percent of households were to switch to electronic bills, statements and payments, every year the impact would:
  • Save 150,939,615 pounds of paper
  • Save 1,811,275 trees

  • Avoid creating 1,439,601,370 gallons of waste water

  • Avoid using 102,945,600 gallons of gasoline

  • Avoid producing 1,960,402 tons of greenhouse gas emissions, which is the equivalent to taking 325,722 cars off the road, or avoiding the consumption of 200 million gallons of gas, and would be equal to preserving 12,405 acres of forestland.

In addition to doing good for the planet's environment, going paperless can also help to declutter and beautify your home and office, which can save you time and stress, and can potentially save you from becoming a victim of identity theft. Almost 85 percent of i.d. theft cases are due to "offline" transactions such as list checkbooks and stolen bills. Consumers who receive electronic bills and statements are able to maintain tighter control over their accounts.

For more information on how to lessen your dependence on paper, you can visit the following links:

http://www.payitgreen.org/
US Postal Service
http://www.wikihow.com/Go-Paperless

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