Junk Your Junk Mail.

*image mirvettium, creative commons

Most people are no fans of junk mail. Besides all the clutter it causes in your house, junk mail can be a big waste of paper and resources. One way to manage all that junk mail is using the reduce, reuse, recycle model to effectively attack the pile.

1. Reduce the amount of mail coming into your house. You can go to the Consumer Credit Reporting website to opt out of receiving pre-screened credit card and insurance offers (for five years or permanently.) You can go to the Direct Marketing Association to request all mail stopped from businesses that belong to the association. Not all companies will be connected to Consumer Credit Reporting or the DMA, but taking those two steps should reduce your volume.

2. Reuse your junk mail when possible. Use the backs of envelopes for shopping lists. Let your kids make collages, papier mache or other crafts. Running it through a shredder adds to the possibilities. Paper shreds can make packing material, hamster cage lining, or campfire starters.

*Paper beads, Creative Commons Image by Bernie Jersey 

3. Make sure to recycle whatever is left. For a doubly positive effect, take your paper recycling to a Paper Retriever bin. Organizations like schools and churches often have these big green bins in their parking lots. The Paper Retriever company periodically picks up the paper and gives the organization a portion of the money raised by selling the paper to recycling centers. That way you have recycled the paper and have contributed money to a good cause at the same time.