Photo Credit: H005 via WC

Sometime we might think of recycling paper as a real answer for our paper waste problems. It saves trees and that’s supposed to be a good thing right? So how many times can a piece of paper be recycled? Can paper be recycled infinitely?

According to the EPA: “No, every time paper is recycled, the fibers get shorter. After being recycled five to seven times, the fibers become too short to bond into new paper. New fibers are added to replace the unusable fiber that wash out of the pulp during the recycling process. A single sheet of paper may contain new fibers as well as fibers that have already been recycled several times.”
Src: epa.gov

If you’re interested in saving trees you also have the option to reduce your paper usage, not just recycle.

Read more about Reducing, Reusing and Recycling in So You Think Recycling Is A Joke?