While papermaking requires large amounts of water, very little water is actually consumed in the production process.
In a typical U.S. paper mill, process water is recycled 10 times or more, then it is cleaned to meet strict U.S. water quality standards and approximately 90% is returned to its source.[1] About 1% remains in the manufactured products, and the rest evaporates back into the environment.
U.S. pulp and paper mills have decreased water use per ton of product by 8.3% since 2005,[2] and by more than 50% since 1975.[1]