PricewaterhouseCoopers and Terciera's stables in Devonshire have found a novel way to recycle shredded paper. It is being used as stable bedding for horses.

In fact, the unlikely partnership has been ongoing for almost two decades — long before "green" was even a catchphrase. And the benefits are countless.

Compared to hay, which can cost up to $30 a bale, shredded paper is free.

Every week Terciera's Stables owner, Karl Terciera collects up to 12 bags of shredded paper from the company in Hamilton. That's enough paper for up to 10 stables every week.

Shredded paper is clean and ultra-absorbant, light and easy to transport and makes a great addition to the compost heap since it degrades faster, and makes for better fertiliser, than hay or wood shavings (another alternative Mr. Terciera uses).

Field tests at the University of Florida found that paper, especially newsprint bedding, will absorb almost twice as much water as straw bedding. In fact farmers who have used shredded paper in the US report that it lasts up to twice as long as straw.

At Terciera's stables nothing ends up on the trash heap. The horse manure and shredded paper from the stables is added to a compost heap on the premises and collected by local farmers. "It's perfect for organic farming," Mr. Terciera points out, "because it breaks down so quickly."

Shredded paper is also beneficial to the horses as it is cleaner than straw, saw dust or wood shavings, possesses none of the allergen's or dust associated with straw and helps protect the horses' coats. Ask anyone who has had to get wood shavings out of a horse's tail, they will quickly concur!

As for the effects of ingesting the paper, a study by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection concluded that paper, especially newsprint, is safe for animal bedding, even when bedding is consumed by the animals. Researchers encountered no apparent problems with animal health or milk in feeding studies where dairy cows ate as much as 1.8 to 2.4 pounds per head daily.

In fact, their research indicated that a mixture of 75 percent molasses and 25 percent ground paper made a reasonably good dry product for feed. Mr. Terciera adds that the horses at his stable don't seem to have any interest in eating the paper.

When asked how Terciera's Stables came up with the idea to use shredded paper, he explains that his father started doing his bit for the environment 20 years ago: "We used to get the wood shavings from local saw mills until Bermuda changed over from wooden shutters, that were made locally, to aluminium and PVC. After that there was a lot less shavings available locally, so we still import quite a bit of shavings, but it's expensive."

That's when they started alternating stable bedding with shredded paper. In fact back then literally used The Royal Gazette.

Mr. Terciera explains that for years he used shredded newspaper — supplied to him by the old recycle plant where newspapers were tied in bales ready to be disposed.

The Royal Gazette is still perfect for this purpose. It's printed on 50 percent recycled paper, using soya-based ink, so it's safe enough to use as bedding not only for animals like hamsters and dogs, but also sheep, chickens, pigs and horses.

However, there is a catch. The paper used in the stables must be shredded into small pieces — almost mulched — and many companies don't use the same make of shredders as PWC, making their paper unusable for this purpose. The longer pieces of shredded paper don't break down as quickly, aren't quite as absorbent, and can end up tangled around the animals legs.

Today companies like Mailboxes collect the "longer" pieces of shredded paper from companies to use as packing material for shipping.

The use of the shredded paper as bedding for animals does have a learning curve as it handles like straw, but takes a little longer to spread out than shavings.

When you cut right down to it, the use of shredded paper promotes the three R's — recycling, reusing, reducing, and you don't have to own a horse to help.

Since many people use shredders at home, shredded paper can be combined with water and used as fertiliser. Alternatively, if you own a spot in a community garden, consider asking local companies if they would part with their shredded paper for recycling purposes and help spread the word — and the green!