The Economic and Social Benefits of Recycling Used Paper
Vijay Kumar, Shipra Gupta and Bhanu Sharma
Graphic Era Hill University, Dehradun, India
Keywords: Recycling, Waste Papers, Handmade Papers, Wood Pulp, Social Benefits.
Abstract: In this manuscript, a complete case study about the socio-economic benefits of recycling used answer books
of students at an educational Institute in India was done. Many developed and undeveloped countries are
working in the field of recycling waste papers. A lot of number of used papers are generated by the students
of an educational institute in the form of answer books, assignment work, practical files, etc. In this manuscript,
the calculation has been made concerning the year-wise number of students at the institute. Calculations have
been made for three years (2021-23). It is also calculated that if various types of handmade products are made
and sold in the market, the economic benefits become 100 times for file cover production, 300 times higher
for notepads, 250 times higher for soft boards, and 200 times higher for bags than the direct sale of scrap
papers of the used answer books of students. It will also help to save the environment by saving trees, using
less water, less use of fuel, and air, water pollution, and land pollution. The recycling of waste papers and the
production of handmade papers will produce employment in the institute.
1 INTRODUCTION
This study examines the societal and economic
aspects of recycling. Everyday life in modern
civilization, a considerable amount of paper is
utilized; most of which, after being used for a short
time, is lost among other wastes. Indeed, it sometimes
causes pollution in its torn and scattered state. Wood
accounts for 90% of the paper pulp utilized today.
The amount of money owed for the manufacture of
paper is connected to one's surprise, with 35% of
deforested land and 1.2% of the yearly gross world
product. The paper used for writing or printing is
based on wood, and it is unique in its variety - A.S.
Nizami, et al., (2017). Fabrics also become their first
form during the recycling period. During the creation
of printing or copying papers, more than many tons
of wood are saved by refining a ton of paper.
Wastepaper recycling also saves more than a ton of
wood, which is why its significance in preventing
pollution and saving the environment is clear. A
renewal paper that renews tissues, and newsprint
papers, can be prepared, and they can be prepared at
least five or seven times. The amount of wastewater
and, especially, the amount of paper executive wastes
are essential factors in the paper recycling process -
Y.Sadef, et al., (2016).
Paper recycling involves taking waste type
and filtering it, transforming it into raw materials, and
then using it to produce a new product. Types
including recovered waste, magazines, envelopes,
containers, and any other type of paper are all
normally gathered. Paper recycling begins with
filtering the waste type by type. The great majority of
recycled newspaper is used in handmade document
items. The filtered type is usually run through a
pulper that keeps operating in combination with
compounds and water in combination with
compounds and water - Nizami A S, et al., (2017).
Document chips and water are mashed into cellulose
fragments, separate plants being nominated filament,
and these, after preparing, become pulp, a mix of
water and fibre. The pulp is created by clipping a set
of rotors. The leaves are usually moved through the
pulper's screen and as an example, through a pulper,
that removes tiny pollutants, such as broken plastic
and containers, are removed from the pulper's
screens. This technique is known as "webbing." The
filters separate any particularly dense fibre bundles in
the pulp into individual fibres - A.S. Nizami, et al.,
(2015). The chemicals that give the detected paper its
colour is removed when it does. The pulping
machine's screen gets rid of tiny impurities like
plastic fragments and cement bulbs. It is known as the
Kumar, V., Gupta, S. and Sharma, B.
The Economic and Social Benefits of Recycling Used Paper.
DOI: 10.5220/0012875100003882
Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)
In Proceedings of the 2nd Pamir Transboundary Conference for Sustainable Societies (PAMIR-2 2023), pages 527-531
ISBN: 978-989-758-723-8
Proceedings Copyright © 2024 by SCITEPRESS – Science and Technology Publications, Lda.
527

webbing process. Furthermore, the pulp may be
encircled by sizable cylinders in the form of cones.
2 LITERATURE REVIEW
First, recycled paper is a cyclical good. It can be
bought and sold up to eight times. Unexpected
shortages of a given commodity can have devastating
effects on a company's bottom line — across many
different industries - A.S. Nizami, et al., (2015).
Instead, we found that an incredible number of jobs
come out of it — ten times as many, on average. We
turn the paper that we gather and sort (which speeds
manufacturing) into recycled paper fibre that goes off
to make new products. We work with many small
businesses and non-profit organizations to sort
through around 350,000 tonnes of paper waste each
year. We have worked with local employers to create
jobs and opportunities for workers with special needs
(they have found jobs and independence, and many
have turned that experience into a professional career)
[6]. We also need to manufacture our recycled papers,
and some are made in mills where a mix of virgin
fibres is necessary to deliver higher quality than the
vast array of recycled paper options that we have -
O.K.M Ouda, et al., (2014). In many cases, of course,
that virgin fibre is from FSC-certified forests,
benefitting organizations that manage forests for
paper production. All of this is supposed to go into
sustainability plans, it is their triple bottom line,
though that is not often discussed. As a result, our
partnerships have enabled us to invest in the
machinery, diversify our workforce, and increase our
volume collected, from just 90 tonnes to 600 tonnes,
in just three years.
3 METHODOLOGY
Paper waste is a significant problem that has been
addressed by this team with a solution that
demonstrates that forgoing is possible. Waste papers
collected from a university for three years were
recycled into saleable products. The university
provided the following statistics annually for the
years 2020, 2021, and 2022. UG and PG students had
increased from 15,000 to 18,000 to 20,000 during
these years. A total of 10 theory exams and 8 practical
exams were held by students this academic year and
a new paper was required for their answer booklets
every time. In addition, the students had to prepare
notes and assignments for each subject from the
course curriculum, and the rest of the paper was
wasted after the exam. Waste papers could be
recycled into saleable products such as file covers,
notebooks, certificates, visiting cards, tote bags, soft
boards, etc. instead of being sold directly to some
institution as usual. It also analysed revenue
generation, employment opportunity, energy saving,
decreased environment pollution, storage area in
landfills, and savings in the use of oil and tree life in
various parameters of sale of waste papers directly
and recycling them.
4 OBSERVATION
Below highlighted are some tables with the respective
observations which have been scheduled year-wise.
Table 1: Amount waste papers produced by students per year in a given year
Year
2021 2022 2023
Total Number of Student
14000 15000 17000
Waste Paper (kg)
299628 321030 363834
Table 2: Net Income generated following waste-paper recycling
Year 2021 2022 2023
Waste Paper (Kg) 299628 321030 363834
Revenue generation by waste paper @ Rs. 12 3595536 3852360 4366008
Salary of Collection staff (2 person per year) 360000 408000 480000
Net Revenue generation 3559536 3444360 3886008
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Table 3: Gross sales of recycled goods during the academic year (2021)
Items
Weight of
handmade
paper
product
Cost of
each
product
(Rs.)
Number of
handmade
paper products
(in crores)
Revenue
generation
(Rs. in
crores)
Staff for
Sale (8
person per
annum)
In lakh Rs.
Staff of
manufacturing (8
person per year) in
lakh Rs.
Net Revenue (Rs.
in crores) by the
handmade paper
products
Paper
File
210 gm 22 1.7 37.29 48 28.8 36.52
Note
Pads
60 gm 25 5.93 14.83 96 28.8 13.58
Soft
Boards
(4’*3’)
2.5 kg 600 0.14 85.43 48 28.8 84.66
Carry
Bags
120 gm 25 2.97 74.16 48 28.8 73.39
Table 4: Gross sales of recycled goods during the academic year (2022)
Items
Weight of
handmade
paper product
Cost of
each
product
(Rs.)
Number of
handmade
paper
products
(in crore)
Revenue
generation
(Rs. in crore)
Staff for
Sale (4
person per
annum)
In lakh Rs.
Staff of
manufacturing (4
person per year)
In lakh Rs.
Net Revenue (Rs.
in crore) by the
handmade paper
products
File
Covers
205 gm 20 1.72 41.29 48 28.8 36.52
Note
Pads
60 gm 20 6.14 17.83 96 28.8 14.58
Soft
Boards
(4’*3’)
2.5 kg 700 0.15 96.43 48 28.8 94.76
Carry
Bags
120 gm 25 2.98 85.16 48 28.8 83.39
Table 5: Gross sales of recycled goods during the 2023 academic year
Items
Weight of
handmade
paper product
Cost
of each
product
(Rs.)
Number of
handmade
paper products
(in crores)
Revenue
generation (Rs.
in crore)
Staff
for Sale (4
person per
annum)
In lakh Rs.
Staff of
manufacturing (4
person per year)
In lakh Rs.
Net
Revenue (Rs. in
crore) by the
handmade
paper products
File
Covers
205 gm 20 1.82 42.29 48 28.8 36.52
Note
Pads
60 gm 20 7.15 18.93 96 28.8 14.58
Soft
Boards
(4’*3’)
2.5 kg 700 0.16 97.43 48 28.8 95.77
Carry
Bags
120 gm 25 3.1 96.16 48 28.8 84.4
The Economic and Social Benefits of Recycling Used Paper
529

Table 6: Integrated information on recycled good and recent revenue creation
Parameter
Savings per one
ton of papers
Saving due to Recycling
of Papers (2021)
Saving due to Recycling
of Papers (2022)
Saving due to Recycling
of Papers (2023)
Eucalyptus
Trees
42 7652 7885 9689
Energy (kw) 4410 1113120 1046800 1382201
Water (gallons) 7810 1862016 1911100 2409260
Oil (gallons) 423 96378 98750 138821
Landfill volume
(m3)
4.2 842.7 898.27 1175
Table 7: Environmental Benefits obtained through water paper recycling
Year
No of
Recycled
product
(file cover)
in crore
No of
Recycled
product
(Note
Pads)
in crore
No. of
Recycled
product
(Soft
Board)
in crore
No. of
recycled
Product
(Carry
Bag)
in crore
Net
Revenue
Generated
by
(file cover)
in crore Rs.
Net
Revenue
Generated
by
(Note Pads)
in crore Rs.
Net
Revenue
Generated
by
(Soft
Board)
in crore Rs.
Net Revenue
Generated
by
(Carry Bags)
in crore Rs.
2021 1.7 5.93 0.14 2.97 37.29 14.83 85.43 74.16
2022 0.17 0.61 0.15 0.3 41.29 17.83 9.33 85.16
2023 0.18 0.72 0.16 0.31 42.29 18.93 97.43 96.16
Average 0.16 0.56 0.013 0.19 1.1 42.27 9.3 2.66
5 DISCUSSION
It would be logical to predict that the rise of
technological advancements would lead to the decline
of paper used for a variety of purposes, but the paper.
is more popular than ever. Here, selling waste papers,
either directly or as a product for ultimate use in an
industrial procedure, varies significantly — both
economically and environmentally. In University
education, students undergo five theory tests, four
practical tests, five home assignments, and four lab
files per semester. Table 1 shows how much
wastepaper is produced by the students at an institute
in a consecutive year. Table 2 expresses the net
Income generated by the recycled waste papers. This
study considers three major tables 3, 4, and 5 to
evaluate, and explain how waste of used student
papers may produce employment and enhance
earnings by turning into numerous products. The
economic values of these hand-made paper products
are estimated in Table 6. This work has therefore
demonstrated the benefit of saving, for environmental
and natural resources, the waste of student-used
papers for recycling-in-depletion on genuine fibres
since the recycled paper does have better
environmental benefits than wood fibres, Table 7; and
recycling the waste of used paper has a significant
positive effect on the environment throughout its life-
cycle, the Table illustrates extensively specific ways
by which used student's papers save every University
or institution annually in terms of water, electricity,
fuel, and trees. Besides, there could be little potential
economic gain, if the waste were to be exported
internationally for recycling and paying for
transporting and recycling the waste papers locally
could be commercially preferable.
6 RESULTS
The calculations for revenue generation, employment
creation, and number of trees saved, fuel oil saved,
water saved, and electric energy saved by paper
recycling are shown in the tables. The paper used by
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the students over the previous three years i.e., 2021-
2023 is shown in Table 1. The sales revenue from the
wastepaper in 2021-2023 by employing two people
without any processing of the waste-paper is going to
be Rs 3048480, Rs 3682176, and Rs 4064640 as
shown in Table 2. The revenue generation will shoot
up in a big way when the used answer books of the
students are recycled and converted into different
types of handmade paper products such as carry bags,
file covers, soft boards, and notepads. In 2021, this
generated an income of Rs 2.65 cr from the
production of file covers, 9.25 cr from the production
of note pads, 7.73 cr from soft boards, and 5.61 cr
from the carry bags with employing four people as per
Table 3. In 2022, similar products from recycled
paper gave the sales revenue of 2.56 cr from the
production of file covers, 11.14 cr from the
production of note pads, 9.32 cr from soft boards, and
6.54 cr from the carry bags employing four people as
per Table 4. In the year 2023, similar paper products
generated a revenue of 3.47 cr from the production of
file covers, 12.4 cr from the production of note pads,
10.38 cr from soft boards, and 8.36 cr from the carry
bags employing four people as per Table 5. Integrated
information on recycled goods and recent revenue
creation for the year 2021, 2022, 2023 and their
average basis is given in table 6. Recycling can
provide economic benefits as well as help save the
environment by saving trees and cutting down on air,
water, and land pollution. Table 7 shows through this
study, it is resulted that in 2021, recycling the used
answer books of the students, can help save 1762006
gallons of water, 95377 gallons of oil, 7638 trees, and
1013000 kW of electricity. In 2022, recycling using
answer books of the students helped to save 1911100
gallons of water, 98750 gallons of oil, 7885 trees, and
1046800 kW of electricity. In 2023, recycling using
answer books of the students helped to save 2308250
gallons of water, 128720 gallons of oil, 9587 trees,
and 2308250 kW of electricity. It means that the
recycling process can provide many more economic
benefits to the country, and it can also generate
employment.
7 CONCLUSION
From the above analysis, this study concludes that
recycling wastepaper will lead to the development of
our environment, forests, and trees, and having
people undertake recycling will benefit society.
Recycled paper from the recycling machine looks as
thin and smooth as wood paper. Banners, titles,
postcards, etc. may also be made with recycled paper.
After analysing this study, it is observed that
recycling used answer books of the students of the
educational institute into carry bags, file covers, soft
boards, note pads, etc., the amount of generation of
revenue increased. As compared to the direct sales of
the used answer books of the students, the revenues
are significantly higher than from direct sales. It is up
to 200 times higher for carry bags, 100 times higher
for file covers, 300 times higher for note pads, and
250 times higher for soft boards than the directly sold
used answer books of the students. In addition, the
production of handmade paper products also helps to
save trees, less use of water, less use of fuel, air,
water, and land pollution, and can also generate
employment. In conclusion, by recycling used answer
books the students, less usage of emissions of
greenhouse gases.
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