United States Postal Service

For immediate release

Phil Edwards, Southeast Area (205) 521-0457 or

Dan De Miglio (415) 536-6490/1(800) Sky-Page pin # 529-8752

As an environmental leader committed to the safety and health of the nation and its workforce, the United States Postal Service is always looking for ways to recycle, and Phil Edwards, Environmental Compliance Coordinator for the Alabama District, has come up with a real winner: turning undeliverable Standard Mail (advertising mail) and mail that has been read and discarded by customers into pencils that promote recycling.

Edwards got the idea at a trade show where he saw pencils that had been made from recycled currency. He contacted J. R. Moon Pencil Co. in Lewisburg, TN, to discuss the feasibility of his idea, and then he set up a meeting between the pencil company and Lydall composite Materials, Inc., a company that would convert the mail into the pencil materials. They did a test run to verify that the materials would be compatible and to identify what percent of mail the final composite would have. The test was a success with the pencil material ending up being about 25 percent recycled mail.

The pencils will be used by postal employees in the performance of their jobs and will be distributed to students to increase awareness of recycling efforts. "This product will not only provide the Postal Service with a yet another method of recycling waste materials, it will also give us an opportunity to educate people about the environment," explained Charlie Bravo, manager, Environmental Management Policy, Washington, DC.

The Postal Service has long been involved in preserving and protecting the environment and has won many national environmental awards, including 20 "Closing the Circle Awards" from the White House. "The Postal Service purchases more than $100 million worth of products with recycled content every year, has the nation's most recycling centers and the largest fleet of alternative fuel delivery vehicles, and we have even turned undeliverable mail into rich compost," added Bravo. "In all the communities it services, the Postal Service is committed to being a good environmental neighbor."

The first shipment of pencils was received on September 10 and the Postal Service will officially introduce them on September 22 at the 16th annual Congress and Exposition of the National Recycling Coalition being held in Orlando, FL on September 22-24.

Phil Edwards, Environmental Compliance Coordinator for the Alabama District, was at a trade show where he saw pencils that had been made from recycled currency, and he thought to himself, "Paper's paper. So why couldn't we use undeliverable mail to make pencils?"

He knew the Postal Service was interested in finding innovative ways to recycle mail and keep it out of landfills, so he contacted J. R. Moon Pencil Co. in Lewisburg, TN, to discuss the feasibility of his idea. He then he set up a meeting between the pencil company and Lydall Composite Materials, Inc., in Covington, TN, a company that converts the mail into the pencil materials. They did a test run to verify that the materials would be compatible and to identify what percent of mail the final composite would have. The test was a success with the pencil material ending up being about 25 percent recycled mail.

The mail for this test run of pencils was collected from post offices throughout the Alabama District. "We delivered about 1,000 pounds of mail to the composite company to ensure we had enough," said Edwards.

Some of the main concerns about the pencils were their cost and the feasibility of the Postal Service manufacturing them, so Edwards first ordered a test run of 500 gross to distribute employees to use on their jobs and to students to increase awareness of recycling efforts. This product will not only provide the Postal Service with a method of recycling its waste materials, it will also gives us an opportunity to educate children about the environment. "Putting these pencils in the hands of kids will help educate their parents, too," said Edwards.

The Environmental Office of the Southeast Area of the Postal Service received its first shipment on September 10 and is officially introducing them on September 22 at the 16th annual Congress and Exposition of the National Recycling Coalition being held in Orlando, FL on September 22-24.

"Making pencils out of this mail is just one idea," says Edwards. "Approaches to recycling are only limited by our imagination." And right now his imagination is already working on making plastic pens out of discarded plastic mail pallets.

USPS MAKES PENCILS FROM RECYCLED MAIL

A: They are made from undeliverable Standard Mail (advertising mail) and mail that has been read and discarded by customers.

A: The mail for this test run of pencils was collected from post offices throughout the Alabama District. It is mail that can't be delivered because of incorrect or unclear addresses, mail that is not forwardable, and mail that has been read and discarded by customers.

A: For this initial run, the Postal Service delivered about 1,000 pounds of undeliverable mail to the composite manufacturer.

A: J. R. Moon Pencil Co. in Lewisburg, TN is manufacturing the pencils, and Lydall Composite Materials, Inc. in Covington, TN, is converting the mail into the materials from which the pencils are made.

A: The pencils contain approximately 25 percent recycled mail.

A: The USPS delivers the mail to Lydall Composite Materials, Inc., which takes it and adds wood flour, mostly made from ground up mill sawdust, resin binder, a wax lubricant (which aids in sharpening), and water, and mulches it altogether in a giant blender called a pulper. The material is then formed into multi-layered sheets, which are pressed and dried and then cut into slats. The slats are shipped to the pencil company, which adds a graphite and plastic mix (the "lead" in the pencils) and shapes them into pencils. All the materials are environmental safe.

A: The USPS has long been involved in environmental efforts and is always looking for ways to recycle. This gives us the opportunity to recycle undeliverable mail that would end up in landfill while at the same time sending a strong environmental message about recycling.

A: For this pilot test, the Postal has ordered 500 gross, or about 72,000 pencils.

A: The pencils cost about 10 cents apiece to make, which is a bargain because the Postal Service provides part of the materials from which they are made. Products made from recycled materials sometimes cost more than products made without recycled material. The Postal Service is paying for this test run.

A: We are going to distribute them to employees to use on their jobs and to students in local schools for educational purposes.

A: We are looking into the feasibility of doing that. We perhaps will sell them in our retail stores because they send a powerful environmental message about the importance of recycling.

A: The pencils will be shown to the public for the first time on September 22 at the 16th annual Congress and Exhibition of the National Recycling Coalition in Orlando, FL.

A: Besides these pencils, the USPS is involved in a project in Texas to turn recycled mail into rich compost soil. The USPS is serious about finding ways to keep undeliverable and read and discarded mail out of landfills. Last year the Postal Service recycled one million pounds of materials.

A: The USPS has the most recycling centers and the largest fleet of alternative fuel delivery vehicles in the nation, it purchased more than $150 million worth of products containing recycled content and is a national leader in the use of re-refined oil and retreaded tires. The Postal Service has received many national recycling awards, including 20 "Closing the Circle Awards" from the White House.