The best way to improve our carbon footprints and help our planet is by recycling and reusing as much material as we can. Rather than chucking all of that old paper lying around your house, these are some great ways to reuse shredded paper in your home.
- Pack Things to Ship: Shredded paper can provide enough cushioning to keep your fragile items safe and is much more environmentally friendly than styrofoam packing peanuts. To avoid
a messy cleanup, stuff the paper into Ziploc bags to imitate the air pillows shipping companies use. After you’re done, reuse the packages or use the paper in a compost heap. - Let Your Kids Craft: Paper can be used in a variety of arts and crafts projects. Give your kids some paint, a couple of brushes, and the shredded paper to create a masterpiece with. You can even mix equal amounts of flour and water and use the shredded paper to make paper-mȃché sculptures.
- Fill Gift Baskets: Why spend money and use store-bought paper scraps or plastic grass when you can reuse shredded paper to fill holiday gift baskets? Cover the bottom of your basket with some finely shredded paper, and nestle your goodies atop it. It’s safer than plastic grass and more environmentally friendly.
- Make Your Own Mulch: You can plant shredded paper as mulch directly into the soil around trees, shrubs, and gardens. The microorganisms in the soil will break down and eat the paper the same way they would in a compost heap.
- Use It as Animal Bedding: Line your pet’s crate with shredded paper for added comfort. You can even donate the paper shred to your local vet’s office or animal shelter so they can use it for other pets. Just make sure to check that the paper and ink materials are safe for animals.
It’s always a better choice to reuse shred paper than simply throw it away. At Complete Shredding Solutions, we recycle all of the materials we shred at our facilities by sending bales of shred paper to mills that use the waste to make new paper. If you want to help your planet while safely destroying your documents, our shred service is here for you!
For more information on paper shredding services on Long Island, NYC, or New Jersey, call us at 516-442-1624.
