Ban The Phone Book
Just this past week, I received not one or two, but four different phone books. The bag part is that I simply put all of those books right into the recycling bin because I do not use them.
Just to think that over 5 million trees to produce these books that many of us don’t even look at. On top of just the environmental impact, we are spending over $17 million as well as the environmental impact to have those books recycled. Seeing that so many people would rather use online resources instead of a thick, often hard to navigate book, why do we continue to receive them?
Now it’s your turn to do something about it. BanThePhoneBook.org is pushing to make a difference by promoting an opt-in program. Instead of trying to get everybody to opt-out of receiving phone books, they would like to have a program in which individuals have to request to receive a white pages phone. This plan makes so much sense. It still allows individuals who want to receive a phone book, while keep the rest of us from receiving these useless books.
So how can we help? Visit their site to sign their petition to get local governments to institute an opt-in program. You can also support the cause by becoming a fan of their Facebook page. I have done both and hope you do the same.
Comments
The best thing about living in Shoreline, WA (just over the line of Seattle, WA) there is an option with our trash company, Cleanscapes, that we can sign-up not to have phone books delivered.
Excellent Post! The more folks do something about their phone books such as recycling, having them not delivered to their home as the above commenter mentions and/or your excellent idea. Hopefully, this will spread like wildfire!
I’m really hoping this idea picks up. It’s good to see that local communities are already starting this trend by having an opt-out program. Let’s hope that this trend continues and we can no longer have phone books delivered to us.
I totally agree. Phone books are a huge waste. In this digital age, there’s just no reason to keep making them anymore. Would be great if this idea gained momentum.
Till then,
Jean
I guess it’s cheaper to use extra paper instead of extra ink. Perhaps someone needs to come up with a green font which uses thin lines without being too wide.
I also agree that phonebooks are a huge waste. In our apartment there is a big stack of phonebooks in the basement from people who don’t need one. It seems that the only reason phonebooks are still around is because it is a business with many interested advertisers. Those advertisers are often the ones behind the times and are not taking advantage of things like online advertising.
Great issue to highlight!
There are actually more ‘eco-friendly’ fonts available for free download online that could help if phonebooks will continue to be printed. (For Eve)
One other fun idea for all of the phonebooks that are laying around that are not recyclable sprouted from Readymade. They made a coffee table with a glass topping out of old phonebooks
Thanks for the link to the petition!
Originally from the UK, we have the same problem receiving multiple phone books and they go straight into recycling. If they ioncluded s aimple optout mechanism with each phone book they could fairly easily build a database of people who don’t want the book and save a lot of money and paper at the same time.
Is there really a group of people who want to save the phonebook?
http://www.savethephonebook.org/
Safer, Saves jobs, and American?