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The DMA has recommended that the 'recycle now' logo should be used by all of its members.

The trade body hopes the use of the logo - which is part of a national recycling campaign for England - will raise awareness among consumers and help to ensure that 55 per cent of direct mail is diverted from landfill by 2009.

Robert Keitch, director of media channel development at the DMA, says: "In 2006 it was estimated that the UK had seven years of landfill capacity left. There may come a day when it is not an option to send DM to landfill and therefore it is critical we act now."

The industry narrowly missed its 2005 target to have 30 per cent of all direct mail recycled. The DMA realises that next year's target represents a big challenge and is promoting use of the logo as part of a larger call to action.

"This is not ground we are going to give up easily," says Keitch. "It will get to the stage when we will no longer be able to take charge of the situation because someone will make the decision for us."

The DM industry - which creates 500,000 tonnes of waste paper a year - is the UK's third biggest waster of paper after newspaper and magazine publishers. Every tonne of paper going to landfill creates 1.4 tonnes of CO2 emissions.

"Ultimately it is the clients that will decide through the choices they make; and that will shape the industry. Agencies have a responsibility however to make sure clients understand these issues and can make an informed choice," says Keitch.

The Recycle Now campaign was created on behalf of the Government by the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP). Launched in 2004, it supports individual recycling targets to help increase the national recycling rate to 40 per cent by 2010.

In England the rate is currently just under 27 per cent.

The DMA measures the volume of recycled DM through a research company, which calculates the figure by assessing the amount that goes into general waste.

INDUSTRY REACTION

 Rosemary Smith, managing director of RSA and board member of the DMA

The DMA is reviewing various environmental requirements to go into its code of practice. The 'recycle now' logo has had significant support, but of course, none of these things are that simple.

The idea is that all paper DM would display the logo. The major aim of this is to tell consumers that the marketing campaigns they receive are in fact recyclable. The logo would inform a significant number of households and hopefully increase the volume of DM being recycled.

Other measures being looked at include encouraging agencies to make their DM more recyclable and their data cleaner. The main focus of this is to ensure the minimum environmental impact. It is important for the DMA to show leadership on these issues because it can promote best practice across the industry.

 Derek Fairhurst, managing director of Postal Audits

Recycling DM is part of a bigger picture. The amount of energy used to create and transport it is a major issue that the industry will soon have to face.

Most DMA members are fully aware of the need to recycle and have taken steps to ensure they are using recyclable materials. While the 'recycle now' logo may raise awareness, it is still asking consumers to change their habits, and more education is needed to ensure personal data is protected when DM is recycled.

Every city centre seems choked with trucks, and if TNT creates a rival delivery service to Royal Mail, the number of trucks is only going to increase. While enlightened postal services are waking up to this, it needs more consideration.

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