Office Tips for Pollution Prevention
 

Simple Steps You Can Take at Work to Protect the Environment

• Carpool, bicycle, walk, or take mass transportation to work. Encourage carpooling for business trips.

• Recycle office paper, water bottles, aluminum cans and production materials.

• Proof documents on screen when possible, and use print preview and spell check before printing to reduce reprinting of draft documents.

• Use reusable lunch containers instead of paper and plastic bags.

• Order and use non-toxic and recycled materials wherever possible.

• Print and copy paper on both sides of the paper to reduce paper use. Adjust your printer preferences for double-sided printing, or search for "duplex printing" in your computer application instructions to find out how to do this.

• Recycle toner cartridges and printer materials.

• Use reusable cups for coffee and other beverages.

• Use durable dishes instead of disposables and keep an extra set of silverware at work.

• Adjust cooling and heating to reduce energy usage by over-air-conditioning or over-heating office spaces.

• Install florescent energy-saving lights.

• Seek business opportunities with environmentally sound companies.

• Circulate memos, periodicals and reports, rather than distributing individual copies.

• Make scratch pads from used paper.

• Establish purchasing guidelines to encourage waste prevention. Buy durable, highly-concentrated, reusable products as well as recycled-content products.