Environmental Leader

Binders made from 100 percent recycled cardboard covers and 90 percent recycled steel rings will be among the products available at OfficeMax stores as a result of a partnership between the company and TerraCycle, which manufactures products entirely from recycled materials, which, in turn, helps reduce some of the country’s largest waste streams.

The binders come with the world’s first return program for used binders and will be available along with TerraCycle’s plant-based, non-toxic and biodegradable Natural Cleaner line of products that are packaged directly in used 1-liter soda bottles, like the ones their bird feeders are made of.

Also among the green OfficeMax product line will be pencil cases, trash cans and recycling bins made from 100 percent recycled plastic.

Office supply stores have been busy this month. Office Depot announced a new line of green products and Staples has launched the Staples Green Guide, an online catalog of eco-friendly products for contract customers.

According to its first Corporate Social Responsibility report issued last December, OfficeMax reduced its greenhouse gas emissions by more than 32,000 metric tons from 2005 to 2006.