Books can’t usually be recycled in normal household collections because of the glue that’s used to bind them [1]. Books can be sold, but if this is not a preferable or viable option, there are several other alternatives to throwing them away. Some examples are given below:
·Many charity shops will accept books, if they are in reasonable condition
·The local recycling bank may also have a bin for books, for charity donation [2]
·Schools, doctors’ and dentists’ surgeries, hospitals and some libraries may take old books [1]
·Children’s centres might also appreciate donations of children’s books [3]
·ReadItSwapIt is a free service that allows users to exchange books, only paying for postage [4]. Various other similar sites can also be found online, such as Bookmooch which is international and free to join [5]
·Better World Books UK launched in 2008, following establishment in the USA, and is now the world’s biggest socially responsible used bookseller. They provide a free service to dispose of books for reusing and recycling. For every book that is bought from them, they donate a book to somewhere or someone in need. Additionally, they have followed advice to make their business environmentally sustainable and offset their carbon emissions by planting trees in Scotland [6]
·Charity Books provides a revenue generating service for UK charities by selling donated books [7]
·Braille books can also be donated to a charity such as Disabled Equipment Sent Overseas [8] that collects equipment to be sent to countries where it is not readily available. The RNIB National Library Service [9] may also be able to advise on whether they or other organisations are currently accepting donations of braille books
·Book Crossing is a project that allows people to pass their books on to other readers, and track them as they move between people by attaching a label with a unique ID code. Books can be given to someone directly, left somewhere to be found by someone else, or swapped in an official Book Crossing zone which may have been set up locally [10]
There are also various local book recycling schemes and projects, many of which offer a free collection service. They are too numerous to list, but can be found by searching online. Selling books is of course a useful way of ensuring that they are reused, and options for doing so include sites such as Amazon, or specific book selling and recycling sites. An example is Green Metropolis which buys books for £3 and sells them for £3.75 with free postage and no minimum order, donating money to charity and helping the Woodland Trust to plant trees in the process [11]. It’s also worth bearing in mind that purchasing books second hand, or borrowing them from a library rather than buying them, are further ways of increasing the use of an individual book. Having the correct equipment around the home and office to help you recycle other items will also help reduce your environmental impact.
[1] http://www.recyclenow.com/what_can_i_do_today/can_it_be_recycled/paper_products/books.html
[2] http://www.reuze.co.uk/books.shtml
[3] http://www.uk-energy-saving.com/book-recycling.html
[4] http://www.readitswapit.co.uk/TheLibrary.aspx
[6] http://www.betterworldbooks.co.uk/info.aspx?f=facts
[7] http://www.charitybooks.co.uk/
[8] http://desouk.org/help-donate/
[10] http://www.bookcrossing.com/
[11] http://www.greenmetropolis.com/nonmember.aspx
