If you're a Twin Cities resident, you're probably getting about four
phone books a year. Now a new web site helps you out from receiving any
of the millions of unsolicited phone books that pile up on your
doorstep--and in municipal landfills--every year.
Halting delivery is an easy, two-step process. First, visit
yellowpagesoptout.com. You'll be asked to enter your zip code, which will direct you to the phone book publishers who deliver in your area. Then you'll have to call them yourself to request to be removed from their list.
Still, it's a small extra step that's totally worth it.
Not only does it take a toll on the environment to produce the 540 million unsolicited phone books that are distributed annually nationwide, but phone book waste adds up to
660,000 pounds of trash a year. The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency estimates that only 12 percent of Minnesotans recycle their phone books, and as a result, nearly
22,000 pounds of phone books end up in Minnesota landfills every year. That's a lot of waste for something you never wanted in the first place.
After you opt out, you can easily recycle the old phone books that are filling up your coveted cabinet space. To learn how to recycle phone books in your area, check out
RecycleMoreMinnesota.org.