On a recent Thursday morning, nearly 75 community members gathered inside the Pearson Community Room above Symposium Coffee for a Tigard Area Chamber of Commerce meeting. The group looked like most other area chambers, with one important difference: Coffee was served using durable, reusable coffee mugs, instead of in disposable paper coffee cups. Why is this important? On average, more than 400 million cups of coffee are consumed each day in the U.S. That's over 146 billion cups consumed annually! That's a lot of coffee. What's worse is that 56 billion single-use coffee cups are landfilled annually nationwide. That's a lot of 

avoidable waste.

 

What makes a durable, reusable cup the more sustainable choice over single-use coated paper or Styrofoam cup options? Whether it's stainless, ceramic, glass or durable plastic, when taking into account the entire lifecycle of a durable cup, mug or tumbler (extraction, production, distribution, use and end of life), studies and lifecycle analyses have proven that durable, reusable cups have fewer environmental impacts.

 

A common public misconception is that since the cup is made from paper, it's recyclable. In fact, the only thing recyclable about the cup is the removable sleeve, which can be recycled with other mixed recyclables. The typical paper coffee cup is lined with a layer of polyethylene or wax, which prevents liquid from soaking through the cup. For several reasons, this layer makes recycling the cup difficult for most recycling centers.

 

Using a durable, reusable cup is considered "upstream thinking," a mindset and practice where the individual is focused on waste prevention, with the goal of eliminating the generation of a single-use product no matter if it is recyclable, compostable or simply garbage.

 

In many workplace settings, the switch to durable, reusable cups is simple. Does your workplace have a cafeteria or kitchenette area where employees can quickly wash out their cups? If so, encourage employees to use a durable cup or tumbler for coffee, similar to how a durable, reusable container is used for water. Businesses can also replace disposables with durables. Durable coffee mugs can be obtained cheaply from a thrift store, online retailer, or via hand-me-downs. Additionally, if your company is considering the use of durables, if possible, go all in, meaning, don't buy for just a few, buy for all. Remove all disposable options, because if disposable options are available, employees may use them by default. Further, make sure your workplace has storage space for cups intended for group use. Some companies supply new employees with durable coffee cups and water bottles during the new employee orientation process. Others are known to reward employees with durable goods for participating in green workplace activities.

 

How would you know if your workplace uses a lot of disposable coffee cups? Look into your garbage bins. If single-use disposable coffee cups make up a big part of your garbage, the Washington County Solid Waste & Recycling Program can help. Email a waste prevention and recycling specialist for help switching your workplace over to increased use of durable foodservice items, or 

call 503-846-3605.