The “Three Rs” take on a more modern meaning today as the U.S. Postal Service makes it easier for Post Office box customers across the country to recycle their mail.

The Postal Service program, “Read, Respond, Recycle,” provides a convenient, environmentally responsible alternative to bringing home or discarding their mail. The recycling program builds on the tremendous success of similar programs ongoing for more than 10 years.

The PO Box Lobby Recycling program places recycling bins in Post Office lobbies. All bins are locked with a key. Customers are encouraged to remove mail from their Post Office box and open their mail (read), take whatever action is necessary (respond) and simply place the rest of their mail into the bin (recycle). This program has been thoroughly tested and presents no risk to mail security or customer privacy and does not effect postal operations or costs, according to Postmaster General John Potter.

The Postal Service is committed to facilitating and maintaining viable recycling programs and is pleased to be adding Ready, Respond, Recycle locations in the following Postal Service Districts:

• San Francisco District – 92 in San Francisco, Palo Alto, Eureka and surrounding cities
• Santa Ana District – 49 in Santa Ana, Anaheim, Long Beach and nearby cities
• Sierra Coastal District – 44 in Bakersfield, Glendale, Oxnard, Pasadena, Ventura and adjacent cities
• San Diego District – 16 in San Diego, Oceanside, Escondido, Palm Desert and surrounding cities.

The Postal Service is the only shipping company in the country to earn Cradle to Cradle™ certification for all Priority Mail and Express Mail packages and envelopes based on the environmental attributes of the materials used in the packaging.

More information on green initiatives and consumer products can be found at usps.com/green. You can also check Earth911.com for Post Office recycling locations.

An Audio News Release and fact sheet are available for this press release. Please visit the newsroom on usps.com.

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Please Note: For broadcast quality video and audio, photo stills and other media resources, visit the USPS Newsroom at www.usps.com/news.

A self-supporting government enterprise, the U.S. Postal Service is the only delivery service that reaches every address in the nation, 150 million residences, businesses and Post Office Boxes. The Postal Service receives no tax dollars. With 36,000 retail locations and the most frequently visited website in the federal government, the Postal Service relies on the sale of postage, products and services to pay for operating expenses. Named the Most Trusted Government Agency five consecutive years and the sixth Most Trusted Business in the nation by the Ponemon Institute, the Postal Service has annual revenue of more than $68 billion and delivers nearly half the world’s mail. If it were a private sector company, the U.S. Postal Service would rank 26th in the 2008 Fortune 500.