U.S. Postal Service Reduces Consumable Waste

Recycling programs save millions in landfill fees

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Jun 05, 2013, 09:00 ET

WASHINGTON, June 5, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- World Environment Day, sponsored by the United Nations, is one of the most widely observed global days for environmental awareness. Demonstrating this year's World Environment Day theme — sustainable consumption — the Postal Service continues to divert tons of consumables from landfills and reduce waste.

Through recycling programs and initiatives, the Postal Service recycled more than 186,000 tons of mixed paper, 35,000 tons of cardboard, 6,000 tons of plastic and 21,000 tons of other consumables in 2012. This resulted in a 48 percent diversion rate of solid waste from landfills, up 2 percent from 2011.

"Reducing waste is an important part of our sustainability efforts across the country," says Chief Sustainability Officer Thomas G. Day. "The Postal Service is committed to reducing its carbon footprint by keeping materials out of landfills through recycling."

Recycling saves money. By reducing landfill use, the Postal Service saved more than $25 million in fees and generated $23.8 million in recycling revenue in 2012.

To increase recycling efforts agency wide, USPS participates in America Recycles Day and the Federal Green Challenge to promote waste reduction and recycling at Post Offices and other facilities year round.

The Postal Service has won numerous environmental honors, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) WasteWise Partner of the Year award in 2010 and 2011, the EPA's National Partnership for Environmental Priorities award in 2011, The Climate Registry Gold award in 2011, the 2012 GreenGov Presidential Award, and most recently 10 Federal Green Challenge Awards nationwide.

For more information about the Postal Service's sustainability initiatives, including the Go Green Forever stamps, visit usps.com/green and the Postal Store.

A self-supporting government enterprise, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation: 152 million residences, businesses and Post Office Boxes. The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations. With more than 31,000 retail locations and the most frequently visited website in the federal government, usps.com, the Postal Service has annual revenue of more than $65 billion and delivers nearly 40 percent of the world's mail. If it were a private-sector company, the U.S. Postal Service would rank 42nd in the 2012 Fortune 500. The Postal Service has been named the Most Trusted Government Agency for seven years and the fourth Most Trusted Business in the nation by the Ponemon Institute.

Follow the Postal Service on twitter.com/USPS and at facebook.com/USPS.

SOURCE U.S. Postal Service