• 98% of a harvested tree can be used efficiently with today's technology.
• Industry spending for environmental improvement now exceeds $1 billion a year.
• Bark, chipped wood, and other waste materials provide 56% of the energy used by paper manufacturers
• 80% of the more than 500 paper mills in the United States recycle some recovered paper. About 200 of them depend on it as a primary source of raw materials.
• Americans now recover more than 45% of all school and office paper and more than 70% of all corrugated paperboard.
• 45 million tons of paper were recovered in the United States in 1998-an average of 330 pounds per person.
• In 1998, Americans recovered 45% of all of the paper they use.

Industry Facts

• Paper production accounts for 7% of the total manufacturing output for the United States.
• Paper manufacturers employ 1.4 million Americans and rank among the top ten employers in 46 states.  The annual payroll for these workers is $46 billion.
• The forest and paper products industry generates $200 billion in sales annually and is a chief exporter for the United States.