"Paper and paperboard make up roughly a quarter of municipal solid waste in the United States, it is the single largest category by weight. Eliminating paper waste entirely would take a Herculean effort for most households, but whether you want to do good, better, or best, you can cut what you use and recycle more of what you don't."
"The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's last comprehensive accounting of municipal solid waste, released in 2020 with 2018 data, pegged total MSW generation at 292.4 million tons - about 4.9 pounds per person per day. Paper and paperboard accounted for 23.1% of that total, or 67.4 million tons. (EPA has not published an updated edition of the Facts and Figures report since.)"
"The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) reported that about 46 million tons of paper were recycled in the United States in 2024 - roughly 125,000 tons every day - which resulted in a paper recycling rate of 60% to 64% and a cardboard recycling rate of 69% to 74%. Both figures slipped compared to 2023, primarily because exports to Asia softened. Domestic mills, meanwhile, used 1.29 million more tons of recycled paper than the year before, and recycled fiber's share of all fiber used at U.S. mills reached 44.4%, its highest in two decades."
"AF&PA changed its methodology in 2024 to report rates as ranges rather than single numbers and to factor in recycled fiber that arrives in the country inside imported packaging. That makes year-over-year comparisons messier than they used to be, but it also makes the numbers more honest. The headline takeaway has not changed: paper is still one of the most recycled materials in the United States, and overall paper waste has been declining since around 2000 as digitization eats into"
Paper and paperboard account for about a quarter of municipal solid waste in the United States and are the largest category by weight. Total municipal solid waste generation was 292.4 million tons, with paper and paperboard contributing 67.4 million tons. Recycling remains strong: about 46 million tons of paper were recycled in 2024, producing a 60% to 64% paper recycling rate and a 69% to 74% cardboard recycling rate. Rates declined from 2023, influenced by softer exports to Asia. Domestic mills used more recycled paper than the prior year, and recycled fiber reached 44.4% of all fiber used at U.S. mills, the highest in two decades. Method changes in reporting make comparisons less straightforward while improving accuracy.
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