The USPS Expands Post Office Recycling Efforts

From Dallas to Detroit, Nome to San Juan, and 115 national parks, memorials and historical sites in between, recycling mail at Post Offices has just gotten more convenient. With more than 10,000 locations across the country, nearly 50 percent more than last year, it's even easier to be green by recycling Post Office Box mail.

Post Office Box customers can recycle mail at participating national park Post Offices, including those located at Crater Lake, Everglades, Grand Canyon, Kenai Fjords, Olympic, Redwood, Sequoia, Yosemite and Zion. Recycling is also available in Post Offices at national historical sites including Cape Cod National Seashore, Gettysburg National Military Park, Minuteman Historical Park, Natchez Trace Scenic National Trail, and near a number of presidential libraries.

Last year, the Postal Service recycled more than 220,000 tons of paper, plastics and other waste, which avoided more than 700,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions," said Deborah Giannoni-Jackson, vice president, Employee Resource Management. "Lobby recycling is an important part of the Postal Service's conservation efforts, because it helps divert paper waste from landfills and helps our bottom line, making us greener and smarter."

Customers can recycle their P.O. Box mail as an easy, planet-friendly alternative to taking it home to discard. Recycling containers are locked and feature a narrow opening — about the width of a magazine, so the mail, and customer privacy, is ensured. Photos of the recycling containers and a complete list of participating Post Offices can be found in the USPS green newsroom and at usps.com/green.

"Our history of environmental efforts goes back more than 100 years when the Postal Service was recycling before there was even a universal symbol for it," said Sam Pulcrano, vice president, Sustainability. "It's our goal to make every letter and package a greener experience, and lobby recycling is a great way to be green by recycling discarded P.O. Box mail right at the Post Office."

Another way customers can go green, Pulcrano said, is with 100 percent recyclable packaging supplies. The Postal Service is the only mailing and shipping company to earn Cradle to Cradle™ certification for the environmentally friendly design and health standards of Priority Mail, Express Mail and Ready Post envelopes and supplies. Priority Mail and Express Mail supplies are free to customers and can be delivered at no charge. They can be ordered from the Post Office that's always open, 24 hours a day, at usps.com/green.

P.O. Box Lobby Recycling demonstrates the Postal Service's award-winning commitment to being a good green neighbor, Pulcrano said. The agency has won more than 75 environmental awards, including 40 White House Closing the Circle, 10 Environmental Protection Agency WasteWise Partner of the Year, Climate Action Champion, Direct Marketing Association Green Echo, and the Postal Technology International Environmental Achievement of the Year, 2009.