"Recycling doesn't really save trees, because they are farmed, and planted for the purpose. The mills use the trunks for lumber, the bark is sold as biodegradable mulch, and the limbs are shredded for paper. Farmed trees provide a renewable source of lumber."

no offense, but you need to get out more - come to British Columbia, where trees are definitely not 'farmed', and nearly 20% of Canada's newsprint is produced ... bark mulch comes mostly from trees that are stripped and made uniform to be used for power poles, much less from lumber mills, and most of that will be the large "nuggets" from old growth fir trees - the material that is used for pulp is partly the chip refuse from lumber mills, and smaller trees of a quality unsuited for lumber or plywood are pulped, sans limbs .... the limbs are left on the ground in the denuded forest

recycled paper is definitely a plus - trucks that carry paper from the mills to newsprint users return with loads of scrap paper for recycling, instead of running empty, the re-pulped paper is mixed with "virgin" fiber pulp to make more paper [up to 40% recycled content I believe], or is used to make corrugated cardboard and boxboard

it takes about 12 established trees to make one tonne of newsprint ....
in 2001 the world consumed about 40 million tonnes of newsprint ....
nowadays something over 50% of all paper [N America] is recovered for repulping, although about 50% of that is corrugated boxes
the pulp plantations in the US south only produce a part of the paper consumed in the US, and Canada produces nearly twice as much paper as the US, a large part of it being used in the US

yes, the first step is to use less, but recycle what you use, regardless of how you do it - the majority of folks don't compost

Bill

Related topic - 'ya know what really bugs me? The widespread use nowadays of giant chipper shredders for clearing land and removing trees and branches along roadways. At least, it's widespread here in New England. It just seems a waste, particularly with cord wood running at around $150, high gas prices, trees being cut down for paper, global warming.

Yeah, sure, I have raided a few of the piles they left behind and taken home my share of wood chips for the compost pile, but it's only a drop in the bucket. I see road crews and developers leaving giant piles of chips 10 feet high and 30 feet across. It just seems like a shame. There should be some program for collecting these chips and putting them to better use. Paper? Wood pellets? Bio-char?

-Diggity

There are "large diesel trucks coming to haul that paper off to fill up a landfill if they are not coming to pick it up for recycling.

Even with the cost of the large diesel trucks, the deinking process, the sorting of paper, and all the assorted other costs involved in recycling paper it is much less expensive to recycle paper fiber then to make new. Unfortunately we, as a society, do not demand that this be done. There are paper mills that do make new paper from old paper, totally, but consumers do not make an effort to buy that, so the message we send is we do not want that paper. Back in the 1970's a company made some very good paper out of recycled fiber but it was so clean that no one would buy it, even those that really wanted recycled paper, because that paper did not look like "recycled" paper.
Most people are satisfied to see on a paper product that that paper contains 10 percent recyled fiber, which is about the norm for any paper mill to do and most of that recycled fiber comes form the waste generated in the paper mill. If it says 10 percent post consumer waste then that product does really contain some (10 percent) really recycled paper fiber and it could easily be much more, if we the consumers demand that.

Some enterprising pellet manufacturers have contracts with surrounding towns to do the brush/limb removal along the roadsides. Perfect match, really.

There are many areas where the waste stream is getting picked pretty clean by enterprising people. This is a good thing for the environment though a bummer for those of us who like doing some of the picking clean ourselves.

I've heard of one company that talked Wooster, Ohio into letting them deal with the garbage and recycling. No separation required, they just picked up everything and picked through it at their facility and somewhere above 95% of possible recyclables from that area actually get recycled. I suspect they also probably compost most of the organics (I don't know this but they would be nuts not to) and sell them leaving only small amounts of un-reusable/recyclable plastics/synthetics to be landfilled.

I'm glad to hear that, Reg. That's encouraging.

It just seems like such a silly waste to see those piles of chips sitting there unused. It's good to hear that someone is putting them to good use.

-Diggity

If trees used for paper and lumber came from tree farms, then why do the lumber companies keep wanting to log our national forests? And put roads through wilderness areas to log the trees there? Some trees are farmed, in particular Christmas trees are, but plenty still come out of forests. I am totally keen on composting, but recycling paper means they don't have to cut so many forests down.

Re: driving to recycling centers, people also are taking in glass, plastic, and metal at the same time. I imagine very few homes recycle only paper. So they aren't making a special trip just to recycle the paper, they are going there to recycle their cans and bottles as well. Can't compost that glass and plastic very well . . .

I think a more important issue in this country is how much produce and other food gets thrown into landfills. People could eat some of it, most of it could be composted. That is the real waste that I see in the U.S. I do agree that people should reduce and reuse before recycle. Recycling can take a lot of energy, some people act like if they recycle then everything is cool. Better to not buy/use so much junk in the first place.

Marcia

I have to admit that I don't know a whole lot and that I haven't "gotten out a lot", but I can comment upon what I see. First, I live in New Hampshire. The backbone of our economy is the wood products and tourism industry.

Let me clear up something. A responsible forest owner, with the help of a forester, can manage an established woodland property well. By selective cutting, the health and vigor of a forest can be sustained. If you see someone with the diamond-shaped "tree farm" sign, you will notice that a tree farm isn't just rows of trees growing up just to be chopped down for paper. A well-managed woodlot should encourage recreation, aesthetics, promote wildlife diversity and population, and provide a sustainable source of wood products, while protecting forestland, open space, clean water, etc.

Also, being a tree farm doesn't necessarily mean that you inflict the same harm as a commercial agriculture operation. By the way, there is a comparison between a tree farm and a forest. A well-managed tree farm can be coached along to promote certain species of trees, wildife, etc. and can contain even- or unevenly-aged trees. Such a tree farm would be a pleasure for recreational activities of any kind.

I used to think like many of you that when I saw a tree being cut that it was a negative thing. However, by thinning a forest, you are promoting the healthy growth and development of the trees within.

NH is heavily forested, much more so than the early 1900s etc. These forests should be put to use to product wood and non-wood forest products.

Since I haven't weighed all of the pros and cons of recycling, I can't give you a complete, thought-out opinion, but I must say that wood is really a material we should use more of. At least wood is biodegradable, renewable, much more than I can say for plastics and synthetics.

In addition to recycling and composting, I wonder if there would be ways of more easily tilling used paper into the soil to provide carbon for soil microbes, or putting thin shreds on the lawn for a little extra OG. Ok, just a thought.

I would like to pick your brains with all of the possibilities for non-wood forest products. For example, pine needles could be used more extensively for mulch, (pine nuts????), etc.

Finally, what's wrong with logging trails? Sure they look bad and destructive when logging is going on, but look at them a year or two later. Ferns or saplings will take full advantage of the new sunlight, and the animals will have a hayday feeding on new growth.

Thanks, and HAPPY COMPOSTING!!!!!!!
Bruce_NH

Where does the lumber that is used to build houses come from? Where does that lumber you built your raised bed come from? Only someone who has no idea what they are talking about would blame any one industry for the deforestation that you see, and the culprits are those of us that use the lumber and paper that comes from harvesting those trees.
If you go someplaces that has those hot air hand dryers that proclaim those devices help save trees and reduce pollution, and you actually believe that, you are very naive indeed. All those devices really do is save that place some money on trash pickup which is most likely offset by the increased cost of electricity that is generated someplace else which is where the pollution is being generated, more pollution than the paper towels would.

"electricity that is generated someplace else which is where the pollution is being generated"

Have ya heard of Hydro-electricity, not everyone uses coal to generate electricity. And of course the garbage truck hauling those used paper towels away to the landfill doesn't generate any pollution. Nor does the manufacturing of the plastic bag inside the garbage receptacle cause any pollution. What about the cost of labor to clean up all those used paper towels that people throw tither and yon, had ya thought of that? There could be many variables that determine the best method of doing anything.

Maybe take a look at the bigger picture once in a while before we make grandiose proclamations.

Lloyd HRC

My state is the most heavily forested state in the U.S. brag brag
and I'd like to keep it that way.

The only tree farms I've ever seen are raising Christmas trees. Here it's clearcut, ruin the lakes, move on.