Average U.S. Office Worker Uses 10,000 Sheets of Paper Per Year

Average U.S. Office Worker Uses 10,000 Sheets of Paper Per Year

While digital media theoretically lessens the need for paper — everything from e-readers to online shopping has the potential to cut down on paper usage — data shows that the average American still uses the equivalent of a 100-foot Douglas fir tree each year.

For Earth Day on Tuesday, Catalog Spree and PaperKarma gathered information on the serious paper waste situation in the U.S. The data comes from the Clean Air Council and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the federal government's arm dedicated to human health and the environment.

In this infographic, we see paper and cardboard comprise more than a quarter of annual municipal waste in the U.S., while the average office worker uses 10,000 sheets of copy paper every year. Collectively, that's 4 million tons of copy paper used in one year in the U.S. alone.

Check out additional shocking facts below to learn why you should be more sustainable in your paper habits, and do your part in saving the environment.