Ideal Bite

Do you really need printed confirmation that your bank account is almost empty?

Submitted by tmeronek on Fri, 07/06/2007 - 1:01am.

The Bite:

Probably not. Do what we do, and practice avoidance. The number of trees used for receipts is criminal, so hold up on requesting a receipt at the ATM, gas pump, checkout stand, and anywhere else where you have the choice.

The Benefits:

Less litter. Receipts from the 8 billion ATM transactions each year in the United States create a lotta waste.
Easy access. You can view all your transactions on your bank's website, and some stores, such as Apple, will send an e-receipt to your email.
Peace of mind. Misplaced receipts can help identity thieves steal your info.

Personally Speaking:

Wallets stuffed with receipts give the illusion of more cash, and personally, we can't afford to be any more deluded about our spending reserves than we already are.

Wanna Try:

Just say (or press) no.

I work at a high-volume retail store in NYC, and the use of thermal receipt paper is a big issue. We are looking at different ways to lessen our impact on the environment, and I have not found anywhere a fix for thermal paper. We have to print receipts: I fought to reduce bag use, so for loss prevention reasons, receipts are a necessity. Are there any environmentally friendly versions of thermal paper, maybe that's either recyclable or biodegradable?

Posted by: Bridget | March 19, 2009 at 05:54 AM