Recycling vs Reuse
David Levine
Owner, Boxes Near Me
Report by Marshall Styers
School of Sustainability at Arizona State University
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[tab title=”System Boundaries”]
• Resources associated with recycling a corrugated box
• Resources associated with reusing a corrugated box
• Environmental impact of Recycling a corrugated box vs Reusing a corrugated box
• The process of a recycling plant and paper mill are contrasted with the equivalent goal of providing a corrugated box by Boxes Near Me
• This report focuses on the benefit of reusing a corrugated box after one use, compared with recycling the same box after one use
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[tab title=”Recycling Process and Resource Costs “]
• Corrugated boxes must be collected by recycling company [fuel usage][5]
• Corrugated must be sorted out with the help of machinery [electricity usage][5]
• Sorted corrugated boxes are then compacted and baled by machinery [electricity usage][5]
• Bales are transported to paper mill [fuel usage][5]
• Bales are broken down at a paper mill, then added to a repulper (a large vat full of water and electronic mixers) [water and electricity usage][5]
• The paper sludge then moves on to a series of chemical cleaning vats (usually chlorine, chloride dioxide, chemicals which typically end up in waste water [chemical usage, chlorinated byproducts, electricity usage][4][5]
• 14,265 gallons on average of water per metric ton of finished product[6]
• The pulp is then put through dryers and pressed by rollers [electricity usage][5]
• The pulp is then rolled onto large reels where it is then cut in thirds and formed into corrugated boxes for new use [electricity usage][5][/tab]
[tab title=”Recycling Facts”]
• Recycling one ton of cardboard[3] :
• Saves 390 kWh of energy
• Saves 1.1 barrels (46 gallons) of oil
• Saves 6.6 million Btu’s of energy (~1,934 kilowatt hours)
• Recycled cardboard saves 24% of the total energy needed for virgin cardboard[3].
• Recycling reduces energy consumption in the manufacturing process, but does not eliminate consumption per box per use, if recycled after one use.
• Once the cardboard has been sorted, the materials are soaked in a mixture of water and chemicals designed to break down the paper fibers and create a pulp[1] .
• Large amounts of water are still used in the Recycling processes, where as no water or chemicals are used in Reuse. [/tab]
[tab title=”Reuse”]
• No water usage
• No chemical usage
• No extensive sorting machinery
• No electricity usage involved with the delivery and sorting process (other than overhead lighting)
• Only fuel used in delivery, and pick up, with minimal amounts used in warehousing (i.e., forklifts)
• Decreases total energy input into each use; the more a box is used, the longer the original energy spent to make the box lasts
• All pick ups and deliveries made in 15 mile radius
• Limited land usage
• Warehouse not air-conditioned
• Natural gas fueled forklift
• Waste free process; all “rejected” boxes get recycled[/tab]
[tab title=”Conclusion”]
• Selling boxes to Boxes Near Me lowers Humana’s overall environmental impact by minimizing the amount of electricity, water, and chemicals used for each sold box’s lifetime
• The boxes redistributed by Boxes Near Me will decrease demand for new boxes in the Phoenix area[/tab]
[tab title=”References”]
1. R. L. (2015, August 31). Process of Recycling Cardboard. Retrieved February 29, 2016, from http://www.livestrong.com/article/174486-process-of-recycling-cardboard/
2. The Recycling Process After Collection. (1998, July 14). Retrieved February 29, 2016, from http://pages.uoregon.edu/recycle/after_collection.html#cardboard
3. W. (n.d.). Recycling Facts & Tips. Retrieved March 01, 2016, from https://www.wm.com/location/california/ventura-county/thousand- oaks/recycle/facts.jsp
4. MacFadden, T. (1996, May). PNEAC: Fact Sheets and Case Studies: All Printing Technologies: Facts About Paper. Retrieved March 08, 2016, from http://www.pneac.org/sheets/all/paper.cfm
5. Corrugated Recycling Process (Rep.). (n.d.). Retrieved March 8, 2016, from Corrugated Packaging Alliance website: http://www.corrugated.org/upload/FBA_Handbook_RecyclingProcess.pdf
6. Gunderson, J. (n.d.). Water Treatment in the Pulp and Paper Industry. Retrieved March 11, 2016, from http://www.waterworld.com/articles/iww/print/volume-12/issue- 3/feature-editorial/water-treatment-in-the-pulp-and-paper-industry.html[/tab]
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