The green office

There are considerable advantages to introducing ‘green’ procedures into your office. Not only do you make a small mark in relieving the stress on the environment but there is also considerable opportunity to save money for your business.

Consider introducing some of the following measures when printing and see immediate results:

• If you need to print or photocopy ensure that, unless there is a special reason, it is double sided
• If there is any waste paper from the printing ensure it is put in a paper re-cycling bin
• Ensure that coloured printing is kept to a minimum
• Ensure that photocopy machines are shut down at the power point at the end of each day
• Change the defaults on your printers and/or photocopies to accommodate the changes outlined above
• Examine if your toner cartridges can be recycled or safely reused by manually refilling them
• Collect usable scrap paper in paper trays next to all office printers/copiers for staff to use or have the scrap paper turned into pads
• Where possible, scan, convert and file documents as PDFs rather than printing them
• Prepare a ‘Printing for Dummies’ book on how to save paper usage
• Perhaps include a generic statement on emails which states:
  ‘Think before you print, 1 ream of paper = 6 per cent of a tree and 5.4kg CO2 in the atmosphere, 3 sheets of A4 paper = 1 litre of water’