DUDLEY Council is encouraging people and businesses to follow suit as it goes paperless.

The local authority is asking people across the borough to reduce the amount of paper they use as part of the Great Big Green Week, which runs this week.

The council is promoting a ‘GoPaperless’ initiative with colleagues asked to think before they print, utilise digital communication, and recycle paper responsibly.

Top tips for reducing paper use include:

• Signing up to paperless billing with Dudley Council

• Opting out of unaddressed mail

• Archiving and storing digital files, rather than printed ones

• Taking paperless notes

• Reusing paper and envelopes

• Printing on both sides if printing is unavoidable

Businesses can also reduce printing and paper use by encouraging employees to think carefully before printing, communicating digitally where possible, using digital archiving, and signing up to paperless banking.

Balvinder Heran, deputy chief executive at Dudley Council, said: “Reducing the amount of paper that we all use will have a huge collective impact on Dudley borough’s environmental footprint, and it can also save homes and businesses a lot of money.

“We are working towards becoming a net zero council by 2030 and our GoPaperless initiative is part of our vision for becoming a greener authority.”