The idea of pre-cycling is not new. This idea harkens back to my grandparents day when new purchases were not made lightly. Before bringing anthing home there had to be a real need. Maybe there are questions we should ask ourselves before we shop. How often will I use this? Can I get along without this? If I really need it, is is made of materials that can be reused and/or recycled into new products? Using criteria such as these to evaluate purchases can help reduce waste and save money.

For more information see http://www.co.washington.or.us/HHS/SWR/WastePrevention/index.cfm

For me the best part of the show was the information that was available from the organizations that participated. I got information about gardening, pesticides, bike paths, bee keeping, recycled building materials and urban chickens. Metro http://www.metro-region.org/ especially had both good information and knowledgeable staff.

I learned that going green can be as expensive or as cheap as you make it. Install those solar panels or switch to 100% recycled paper for your office. Outfit your home with energy efficent windows or purchase recycled toner cartridges. Changes big or small can reduce your carbon footprint.

If you want to do more to make your office or paper purchases green contact us – we can help.

The blinds arrived and after several calls to the product help line they were successfully installed. After a week my husband and I were once again on speaking terms. After several months I was again on the phone with the company help line with a problem which required me to ship part of the order back to them for repair. Just recently another problem occurred and I am awaiting parts for a repair I will need to make myself.

I learned several lessons from these blinds. Sometimes a “great” sale just means that things have been in the warehouse too long and NEVER under estimate the value of “ in person “ customer service. Only so much advice can be given over the phone. When the blinds won’t open or the paper won’t feed through your printer, having someone who can come out and diagnose the problem is invaluable.

That kind of “in person” customer service is what we offer you. Whether you need to purchase office products that are recyclable and sustainable or you need to identify ways to help your office go green we are ready to work with you.

Portland is a city of many festivals. One my favorites is the North American Organic Brewers Festival

http://www.naobf.org/index.htm It was there that I was introduced to green food service products. The beer tasting cups were made from corn starch. They looked and felt exactly like plastic but were compostable. The cups were sturdy and at no time did I feel in danger of having it dissolve. We did discover the one accidentally left on the dashboard in the intense direct sunlight deformed. They most certainly would not last long in a landfill!

That was several years ago and now there are even more options. Products such as Tater Ware provide plates, cups, knives, spoons, forks and takeaway containers made from potato starch. These products are suitable for both hot & cold foods, they are very strong and they are biodegradable.

Tableware made from 100% compostable sugar cane fiber is another green choice. Sugar cane is rapidly renewable and breaks down in 30 -90 days in commercial composting facilities. It is also microwave and freezer safe.

If you are planning a neighborhood block party, company picnic or family reunion keep it green. We can help.

This is especially true if ,as in my case, your computer skills are not all that good. Even though we have an extremely helpful and patient web designer http://www.mozakdesign.com/ I still find that the process can be extremely frustrating. There are some days when #*%&@+!!!! is my most commonly used phrase.

Please hang in there with us. Soon there will be pictures and descriptions of the recycable and sustainable paper products we offer. In the meantime please contact us with your questions about green paper products.

First some background on laser toner cartridges. The average toner cartridge weighs about 3 pounds and is about 40% plastic, 40% metal with lesser amounts of rubber, foam, paper and toner. The plastic portion of the cartridge alone will last intact in a land fill for hundreds of years. On top of that each year more than 300 million plastic printer cartridges end up in landfills. Feeling guilty yet?

Of course using re-manufactured laser printer cartridges would be the green answer but if quality is important to you is this the right answer?

Re-manufactured cartridges got a bad name from the “drill & fill” operators who would take spent cartridges, drill a hole in them and fill them with low-cost toner. However toner is not the only critical component in a toner cartridge. Within the cartridge is the developer roll sleeve, organic photoreceptor and the cleaning blade all of which need be compatible in order to produce quality images. These “toner only” cartridges just couldn’t be counted on to deliver quality.

Xerox has developed a re-manufacturing process which retains the cartridge’s plastic shell which is disassembled and rebuilt with new components. These cartridges perform to the same specifications as new products while at the same time containing up to 90% reused/recycled parts. This process also keeps more than 10 million pounds of cartridges,waste toner and toner containers out of landfills.

There is another upside to these cartridges. They are compatible with both HP and Brother printers. Using these cartridges will not void HP warranties and you may save 20 – 25% per cartridge.

Are you interested in decreasing your impact on the environment and increasing your bottom line? These cartridges may be the place to start.

Carbonless papers are widely used in businesses large and small for everything from credit card receipts to billing statements and multipart business forms. Carbonless papers were invented in 1954 as a clean way to make copies without the mess associated with carbon interleaves. Carbonless papers work due to the chemical in the coated surface reacting with the chemicals in the emulsion held in microscopic capsules that are coated on the undersurface of the top sheet. Pressure, such as your ballpoint pen rupture the capsules and the chemical reaction causes marks to appear. Very clean and convenient but is it Green?

Until recently, carbonless technology could hardly be classified as Green. Chemicals such as benzene, formaldehyde, vinyl acetate and polystyrenes are commonly used in the production of the microcapsules. Does this mean that there is no Green choice? Not if you choose Xcelerator Plus Digital Carbonless. This product uses palm extracts and pure coconut oil to produce the microcapsules and is manufactured by a company with a strong commitment to environmental responsibility.

An innovative change in technology to decrease environmental impact. When was the last time that you evaluated the impact of your choices on the environment?

When trying to go green with your paper purchases it is sometimes difficult to balance your need for economy with your desire to have less impact on the environment. What kind of impact do you make using 100% recycled paper? What about 50% or 30%?

According to Recycled Papers:The Essential Guide by Claudia Thompson, a ton of paper (copy paper, multi purpose paper etc) uses 24 trees. These trees would be a mixture of hard and soft woods 40 feet tall and 6 – 8 inches in diameter. 100% recycled content would save 24 trees per ton of paper produced. 50% recycled content would save 12 trees and 30% recycled content would save 7.2 trees.

With this information you can make the informed choices that are good for your business and the environment. Let us know the steps you are taking to green your business.

I have loved paper ever since receiving an origami kit at the age of nine. I still remember the smooth feel and the variety of bright colors of the papers. Although my creations usually did not much resemble the pieces shown in the direction book, working with the paper was pure pleasure.

As an adult I have had many jobs. Cake decorator, tax preparer, landscaper, school secretary just to name a few. My favorite job was working at a print shop back in the ’80s. I learned many skills that desktop publishing has rendered obsolete. I learned to set type both by hand and on a Linotype and I ran a letterpress. I also had time to look through paper sample books and gain a real appreciation of the vast number of colors and textures available.

Now there are even more options when it comes to paper including recycled and green choices. More sample books to look at and more learn. I am excited to be working with paper again.

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