Realtor Recycle Recommendations
More than than just ways to reduce, reuse, recycle -- a way of thinking/working
By Katherine Romano, Columbia County Recycling Coordinator

There are many ways that you, as realtors, can save money while showing your clients that you care about the environment and the community. Preventing the amount of waste your business generates and increasing the amount of material you recycle will help save landfill space, reduce pollution, preserve our natural resources, and cut disposal costs. The following tips can help your office reduce waste:

1. Encourage double-sided copying. It's easy and the money you save on paper and postage adds up!
2. Encourage double-sided printing. Many larger laser printers come with a "duplex" option that automatically prints documents on both sides. Installation typically costs about $300, but makes good sense if you use and/or mail a lot of paper.
3. Reuse paper for draft documents and internal memos or make used sheets into stapled scratch pads.
4. Use print preview and spell check (nobody has perfect spelling).
5. Use the MLS computer listing service.
6. Show your clients how to conduct searches on-line.
7. Take pictures of properties with a digital camera and send pictures to MLS electronically. (If you take the digital equivalent of one roll of 24 photos each week you can save more than$300/year.)
8. Send property listings to your clients by e-mail.
9. Keep mailing lists current & targeted.
10. Reduce your company's junk mail by visiting http://dnr.metrokc.gov/ swd/nwpc/ & delisting your business.
11. Buy paper with recycled content and print your letterhead with the recycling symbol to illustrate your company's concern for the environment.
12. Avoid bright tones which can cause problems at paper recycling mills. Use pastel colors or use white paper and print with color.
13. Reuse boxes and packing peanuts (or use shredded paper).
14. Ask vendors to reduce packaging.
15. Use permanent ware, dishes, and utensils in your eating area.
16. Make sure everyone in the office has a small desk-side recycling container or easy access to a big recycling bin and a clear idea of what they can and cannot recycle.
17. Educate new homeowners on recycling policies for the area. Your county recycling coordinator can provide you with a list of recycling locations in the area.n
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Katherine Romano is the Recycling Coordinator for Columbia County Land Development Services. She may be reached at (503) 397-1501 or RomanoK@co.columbia.or.us.

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