Celebrating Earth Day with Document Shredding
Can One Person Make a Difference?
Rachel Carson was an American marine biologist who wrote a book called Silent Spring that exposed the devastating environmental damage caused by DDT and other pesticides. It was published in 1962, just two years before her death, and became an instant best-seller. She spent her final years being attacked by the chemical companies while courageously defending the truth of her six years of scientific research. As a result, the book caused such a stir that DDT was finally banned in 1972.
Rachel and her book are widely credited with helping launch the environmental movement and what we know and celebrate today as Earth Day. Rachel Carson called for humans to act responsibly, carefully, and as stewards of the living earth. She was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Can You Make a Difference?
As a generator of paper documents, you have the opportunity and responsibility to continue Rachel Carson’s fight to protect the earth. By shredding your documents, you already keep your business organized and protect the privacy of your clients, customers, and business associates. But if you’re shredding in house, your municipality likely cannot recycle the shredded paper, so it sits in a landfill and produces methane until it finally breaks down completely.
Instead, you can make a huge difference beginning with how you destroy your sensitive documents.
- In-house shredding may seem easier and more cost efficient, but in the long run, it is not. By using personal office shredders, you may be wasting time, money, and landfill space:
- An office shredder commonly handles a maximum of 10 pages at a time (often less) and at a reduced speed.
- Removing paperclips, binder clips, and rubber bands in advance of shredding is time consuming.
- Using skilled staff time to feed paper into a shredder is inefficient and expensive.
- Leaving documents and private information in the open waiting to be shredded is risky.
- Repairing, unjamming, and replacing shredding equipment is time consuming and frustrating, and often results in staff avoiding the shredder altogether—leaving you at risk of a data breach.
- Recycling paper shredded in-house is often impossible as many waste management services will not take it.
- In contrast, using a reputable, local, professional shredding company to shred your material offers:
- Added protection with locked shred containers to store your documents while they’re waiting to be shredded.
- On-site mobile shredding or off-site pickup shredding depending on your requirements.
- No added cost for shredder repairs, replacements, staff frustrated by paper jams, or even injuries caused by paper shredders (yes, this is a real problem!).
- A Certificate of Destruction to complete the chain of custody process and provide a record of your compliance with privacy protection laws in case your business is audited.
- 100% recycling of all shredded material.
The Value of Recycling
In response to Rachel Carson’s call to act responsibly, carefully and as stewards of the earth, by recycling 100% of your shredded paper, you:
- Keep your paper out of the landfill, reducing harmful greenhouse gases like methane.
- Save 17 trees, 9 barrels of oil, 650kWh of electricity, 60 pounds of air pollutants, and 7,000 gallons of water for each ton of paper recycled.
- Allow new consumer and business paper products to be manufactured from your recycled paper.
- Provide better-paying jobs in the recycling industry to replace landfill and incineration work.
When you choose to shred your documents with a professional shredding company, your company will benefit and the environment will thrive! That’s a win-win situation for everyone.
Shred Boss provides NAID AAA Certified shredding services to the businesses and residents of southeast New Mexico that prioritize both information security and our living earth. If you are looking for secure, affordable, and environmentally-friendly shredding services, give us a call at 575-347-4733 or complete the form on this page and one of our helpful team members will be happy to help you.
