Cardboard is lightweight and cost-effective, making it the ideal material for packaging and storage. Unsurprisingly, according to a report published on Business Waste, over 72 million tons are produced each year to ship various items, and this does not include corrugated board, which is a different material.1
Cardboard is durable for packaging, prevents moisture from infiltrating valuable items, and is designed for long distances – on land or sea. It is involved in the production line from food to beverage packaging.
Relying on cardboard for safe packaging contributes to global waste generation. Although they are 100% recyclable, it’s estimated that cardboard and paper contribute to 17% of global waste.1
Recycling has always been a more sustainable option than dumping in landfills or burning. Burning may not smell like plastic, but it still causes pollution by releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
I recently sold old cardboard and papers to a local picker buying old ones for recycling. Our best recommendation is to recycle rather than burn or dump in landfills.
Recycling Cardboard
Paper materials account for about 10% of total municipal solid waste. The material is made of cellulose fibres, which are combined with other chemicals to improve the paper’s quality. Chemicals are added to bleach the cellulose, which is a renewable natural biopolymer considered a valuable organic compound.2
Cardboard can be recycled multiple times before it can no longer undergo the process. The waste is degradable and fibres of cellulose can be recycled up to seven times.
However, continued recycling leads to degradation in material quality. At this stage, recycling is no longer an option but materials should always be sent to designated facilities rather than tossing it in dumpsters.
Learn more: Are Biodegradable Plastic Bags Good for the Environment?
Environmental Impact of Cardboard Waste
Illegal waste disposal is a global issue that pollutes the air, contaminates the soil and groundwater, and impacts the environment and climate change. Paper waste is part of waste generation worldwide even if it’s hardly discussed as much as plastic waste and pollution.
Cardboard boxes are part of the production line in several industries for safe packaging. Corrugated cardboard boxes are widely used for making safe delivery of goods. Global production is estimated at over 72 million tons each year.1
Not all the millions of tons of paper boxes produced are properly disposed of. If we look back at the production process, recycling seems to be the best solution in general. The manufacturing process of paper materials consumes large amounts of natural resources.
It consumes large amounts of water and energy, with the raw materials extraction process leading to the mass destruction of trees—deforestation, which is a catalyst for global warming and the main cause of the loss of the natural habitat of wildlife
Additionally, paper mills can also discharge pollutants into water bodies, which can affect human health and aquatic ecosystems, according to the World Wildlife Fund.3
Corrugated Cardboard Usage
It’s estimated that more than 90% of products in the United States are shipped in corrugated cardboard boxes for both long and short-distance deliveries.4 This widespread use of this lightweight packaging material means more waste is generated.
However, the good news is that these boxes can be reused for other purposes before they finally become waste. For example, kids can reuse these boxes to store toys and other items. They can also be useful for storing books, handy tools, storage containers or other items.
Cardboard Waste Facts
According to a research study on cardboard waste, municipal solid waste management represents a challenge and an opportunity in the United States. Paper waste is part of municipal solid waste discarded by residential, industrial, institutional, and commercial entities.
In 2019, out of the estimated 110 million tons of paper and cardboard waste managed domestically in the United States, about 56% was landfilled, 6% was combusted, and 38% was recycled. Paper and cardboard remain major constituents of municipal solid waste in the United States.5
In Europe, countries like Germany, the United Kingdom, and France generate a large amount of waste, with the UK generating the most cardboard waste. The United Kingdom prioritizes recycling paper material, performing at a high rate to minimize waste.1
However, the country still has to deal with the large amount of cardboard waste that ends up in landfills. It’s estimated that over 5.3 million tons of paper and cardboard boxes are manufactured yearly in the UK. Out of that number, over 3.8 million tons are recycled to minimize paper waste littering streets and landfills. The material’s recycling rate of 70.6% indicates a significant effort to recycle.1
Recycling over 50% of the annual production of paper material is a great result. It preserves natural resources as the annual recycling rate in the United Kingdom saves the equivalent of 34 million trees.1
Learn more: Why Is Plastic Bad for the Environment?
The Effects of Burning Cardboard on the Environment
Burning cardboard boxes is not without its environmental effects – the environment suffers from it. When a large pile of paper material is incinerated, it causes pollution as toxic gases are released into the atmosphere.
Cardboard boxes are what you will call biomass – which simply describes materials derived from plants or animals. Paper materials are made of cellulose fibres, which are combined with other chemicals that improve the paper’s quality.
6Incinerating corrugated cardboard may not produce a smell like a plastic material would, but it releases carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming. Depending on the adhesive and ink used in the production line, burning these boxes can also release toxic substances such as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).
There is also a risk of uncontrolled fires as cardboard can burn fast at a high temperature.
Effect on Climate Change
Open burning is when any matter is burnt to emit carbon dioxide into the surrounding outside air without passing through a chimney or duct.
Burning cardboard boxes contributes to climate change. When these paper materials are on fire it releases toxic black carbon. The emission of black carbon into the atmosphere causes global warming. “The sooty black material” as referred to by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) can absorb light and heat from the sun.
The presence of black carbon in the atmosphere can warm the air, impacting climate change. This, in turn, leads to changes in weather patterns, with recent droughts affecting various arid regions around the world.7
Another factor impacting climate change is polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). These compounds are emitted through the incineration of discarded cardboard boxes and are considered toxic to the environment. They are present not just in the atmosphere but in water bodies, vegetation, soil, and sediments.8
Are Cardboards Recyclable?
If plastic were to have the same recycling rate as paper materials, we would have reduced non-biodegradable waste littering our environment and ocean. Recycling rates for paper and cardboard and the process can be repeated multiple times.
Although paper material is recyclable, not every country around the world is taking the sustainable step to reduce paper waste. It’s estimated that only an average of 58% of paper waste is recycled worldwide.9
In developed countries, they are taking recycling seriously. The United Kingdom for example recycles over 50% of its annual paper and cardboard production. Efforts have been in the last few years to increase paper recycling to 70% to 75% in developed countries.9
The availability of certified recycling facilities ensures paper waste reduction. Due to rapid urbanization, developed countries are improving waste recycling infrastructures to achieve a higher percentage of paper recycling.
European countries have the highest paper recycling rate in the world, with North America coming in second place, while Asia, Africa, and Latin America have the lowest rates in the world.10 In 2017, European countries were able to recycle about 72.4% of total paper waste. In the previous year, they recycled 72% of waste paper, and the recycling rate kept increasing in the following years.
According to a 1998 report on the North American paper recycling situation and pulpwood market interactions, there has been a rapid increase in paper recycling since the mid-1980s. The total paper recovery consumption at the United States, Canada, and Mexico paperboard mills increased from 17.5 million metric tons in 1985 to approximately 38.56 million metric tons in 1997.11
In the last few decades, the paper recycling rate in North America has improved significantly. According to Statista, the recycling rate of paper and paperboard in the United States was almost 68% in 2022. This shows an improved recycling rate in recent years compared to the 33.5% in 1990.
An improved recycling rate is crucial for resource conservation and waste reduction. Recycling is important for climate change mitigation as it saves more trees from being destroyed for paper production.12
Learn more: 10 Negative Effects of Deforestation on the Environment
Are Cardboards Biodegradable?
Cardboards are biodegradable just as they are recyclable. It’s made of cellulose fibres, combined with other chemicals that improve material quality.
Corrugated cardboard can naturally degrade within months under favourable weather conditions. Exposure in a humid environment speeds up the degradation process. Decomposition also works faster with shredded discarded paper materials.
Cardboard boxes are compostable. Developed countries are taking advantage to reduce paper waste by composting. The United Kingdom eliminates about 3 million tons of waste materials each year through the process of composting.
Their compostable nature can be utilised to improve plant growth in farms and gardens. Composting is a sustainable option to get rid of cardboard boxes used in packaging food – for example, pizza boxes, egg cartons, etc. Degrading back to nature without leaving any toxic residue is sustainably effective for the environment.
Other than degrading or composting in nature, these lightweight materials commonly in packaging are useful in various ways. Repurposing them as storage for books, tools, or random important items is one idea for reusing these boxes. As long as the items are not wet, these boxes can hold pretty much any item not too heavy.
Is Cardboard Sustainable?
Since they are made from material that enables composting and degradation, we can all agree that cardboard is sustainable to use. It is lightweight, ideal for packaging and regarded as a green material.
Cardboard boxes are involved in the production line for food, beverages, and electronics packaging. More than 90% of products in the United States are shipped in corrugated cardboard boxes for both long and short-distance deliveries.
Manufacturers and businesses use corrugated cardboard boxes as a sustainable choice due to the material’s recyclability and biodegradability. Yes, we can say that cardboard boxes are sustainable, more so compared to plastic packaging.
Conclusion
Although cardboard boxes are naturally biodegradable, dumping them in landfills or burning them is not a sustainable option for the environment. Paper and cardboard account for a large share of total municipal solid waste.
Recycling has always been a more sustainable option than dumping in landfills or burning. Burning cardboard boxes contributes to climate change. The presence of black carbon in the atmosphere can warm the air, creating a bad situation that impacts climate change.
Sources
- Business Waste. (2024, February 9). Cardboard Waste Facts and Statistics | Business waste. ↩︎
- Zanda U. Ozola et al: “Paper Waste Recycling. Circular Economy Aspects.” ↩︎
- Pulp and Paper | Industries | WWF. (n.d.). World Wildlife Fund. ↩︎
- Harmony. (2016, February 23). Why recycle cardboard boxes? (Infographic). Harmony. ↩︎
- Milbrandt, A., Zuboy, J., Coney, K., & Badgett, A. (2024). Paper and cardboard waste in the United States: Geographic, market, and energy assessment. Waste Management Bulletin, 2(1), 21–28. ↩︎
- Is cardboard bad for the environment? Stats, facts and trends. (2024, April 3). GreenMatch.co.uk. ↩︎
- Black carbon | Climate & Clean Air Coalition. (n.d.). ↩︎
- Abbas, I., Badran, G., Verdin, A., Ledoux, F., Roumié, M., Courcot, D., & Garçon, G. (2018). Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon derivatives in airborne particulate matter: sources, analysis and toxicity. Environmental Chemistry Letters, 16(2), 439–475. ↩︎
- Zanda U. Ozola et al: “Paper Waste Recycling. Circular Economy Aspects.” PDF ↩︎
- Team, T. S. (2020, December 3). Paper Fact 18: The EU Paper Recycling Rate is 72% – Two Sides. Two Sides. ↩︎
- Peter J. Ince: “North American Paper Recycling Situation and Pulpwood Market Interactions.” ↩︎
- Environmental modeling & assessment. (2024, July 13). SpringerLink. ↩︎