THE average household in Wales received 453 pieces of unwanted mail a year. According to Recycle for Wales, that’s 453 too many.

A campaign launched this week aims to raise awareness of unwanted junk mail and encourage members of the public to sign up to the Mail Preference Service (MPS) to deregister their address to stop receiving unwanted mail.

For each tonne of junk mail produced 17 trees, 7,000 gallon of water and 390 gallons of oil are used.

There are two simple ways to reduce the amount of junk mail you receive:

1. For addressed junk mail de-register your details for free with the Mailing Preference Service (MPS) online at www.mpsonline.org.uk. Within 3-6 months you should see a big difference in the amount of unwanted mail you receive through your door.

2. For unaddressed regional junk mail which is usually labelled to the ‘occupier’ or ‘householder’, that is delivered by Royal Mail, you can contact their door to door opt out service. Send you name and address via email to optout@royalmail.com or call 0845 703 4599

Dan Finch, National Campaign Officer for Recycle for Wales, said, “Over a third of all direct mail is discarded unopened1 which is why we are encouraging people to visit our website to find out how to reduce the amount of junk mail they receive.

“However, if you do enjoying receiving “junk mail” don’t forget to recycle it when you have finished with it using your local recycling collection service, or by visiting your local recycling centre ”

Householders need to be aware that by opting out you may not receive some items you enjoy receiving such as you local councils’ newspaper or offers from your local shop. So before opting out please read the terms and conditions of each service carefully. When you opt out it is not a person who is opting out, but the household – so check with others members of your household first before signing up. They may enjoy some of the “junk mail” they receive.

Opt out today by visiting www.recycleforwales.org.uk/saynotojunkmail for more information or follow us on Twitter @recycle4wales, and like us on Faceboook.co.uk/recycleforwales

Recycle for Wales is a consumer focused campaign run by Waste Awareness Wales, funded by Welsh Government.