Those searching for ways to be green at work can start by thinking black. Coffee consumption results in a considerable amount of office waste that can be easily remedied.
The morning cup of coffee is a ritual for millions that borders on necessity, depending on who you talk to. Often the morning cup of coffee turns into the morning cups of coffee, with paper and Styrofoam cups getting one-time use before heading to the trash can. Bringing a reusable mug to the office might seem like a minor gesture, but as a PayScale.com report details, it can be one of the most significant ways to be green in daily life.
Trashed paper coffee cups pack landfills at a staggering pace. An estimated 150 million java drinkers contributed to the 25 billion cups in 2011. That shakes out to 6.5 billion pounds of CO2 emission from the production of said cups.
Puts any supposed hassle of having to wash or remember to bring home your reusable cup into perspective, doesn’t it?
One suggestion the State of California’s CalRecycle program has for encouraging coffee cup reuse in the workplace is a poster in the office kitchen.