Wrapsacks are a reusable alternative to disposable paper gift wrap. This paper-based industry generates sales of $5.1 billion per year and an equivalent amount of waste. Although it is good to see more recycled paper options, these also require resources for processing. Precycling or reusing is the best choice.

1. Reusing uses less energy and is less taxing on the environment. When you avoid making garbage by reusing, you don't have to worry about disposing of waste or recycling.
2. There is a limit to recycling - every time paper is processed or recycled, it breaks down the fibers. The fibers eventually become too small and can no longer be used and become waste for landfills.
3. Recycling process requires water, chemicals, and chlorine or bleaching agents.

1. Chlorine is a major source of the carcinogen dioxin. Dioxin is known to cause cancer, liver failure, miscarriage, birth defects and genetic damage.
2. The paper industry is the 3rd largest industrial polluter in the USA & Canada, releasing 220 million pounds of toxic pollution into the air, ground and water annually.
3. Three million tons of chlorine is used annually to bleach pulp & paper fibers. Chlorine requires vast amounts of water - it takes 10.2 gallons of water to produce a 6 1/2 oz. paper booklet.

1. US paper producers consume 1 billion trees each year - that's equivalent to 12,430 square miles of forest.
2. 70% of fiber consumed by pulp and paper industry is from virgin wood. Only 5% of virgin forest remains in the USA.
3. Deforestation has released 120 billion tons of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) - a major contributor to global warming.

1. The average person in the USA creates 6 pounds of waste per average day. Each household creates just under 1 ton of waste annually.
2. Between Thanksgiving and New Year's Day household waste increases more than 25%. - that's an additional 1 million tons a week that goes to our nation's garbage piles.
3. Biodegration in landfills is an anaerobic process that produces methane gas. Methane contributes to global warming.

1. The national recycling rate has remained at approx. 27% for the past 5 years. The recycling recovery rate is the percentage of total waste that is recycled. It is calculated by dividing the weight of recyclables recovered by the sum of the weight of recyclables recovered and the solid waste discarded.
2. There are at least 10 states that have less than 10 years before their landfills reach capacity.
3. The USA consumes 30% of the world's paper. We recycle only 5%.

It is time for us to change our habits for a cleaner world. It is time for us to protect the environment for our future generations. It is time to make smart decisions.

Wrapsacks - Smart Gift-wrap.
Kathryn Hapke, Founder