The dark side of notes

Thirty years ago, Post-it note was a revolutionary new invention that seemed harmless, but they could destroy books and interfere with recycling.

The New York Times celebrated the 30th anniversary of the release of Post-it Notes, a major innovation in the nation's disease in the late 1970s, perhaps because it introduced some sunny yellows in workplaces in the stagflation era. It also illustrates how bold marketing and user ingenuity can complement each other in difficult times:

Notepads produced in-house by 3M were popular, but when they tested it in four markets in 1977, shoppers had little interest. The following year, the company came to Boise, Idaho, to conduct an internal Boise Blitz. Free samples are widely distributed to offices, so habitual products make more than 90% of Boise people accept samples and say they will buy them.

When the brand was officially launched in 1980, using only yellow pad paper, the company once again freely distributed free samples, including to the CEOs and secretaries of Fortune 500 companies.

Of course, the success of Post-it is largely attributable to the surge in paper use introduced in the original Xerox copier and its successors in the 1960s and early 1970s.

But there are hidden dangers in Post-it and its clones. Please read the following warning from the University of California San Diego library website:

The ruling is on post-it notes and similar sticky marks! Although they are easy to use and can be removed from most paper surfaces, do not try to use them in books. These seemingly harmless "marks" leave behind adhesive even if they are removed immediately. The adhesive hardens and leaves a film that becomes acidic. This can cause the paper to eventually become discolored and brittle. They are designed for short-term applications to consumable documents and are not used in permanent records and books.

The National Archives Administration (NARA) conducted a study that determined that even if it was removed immediately, there would still be adhesive residue. When used on newsprint (some ink has been removed) or fragile, fragile paper, it produces an even more dramatic effect, and removing these papers may cause the page to tear. The NARA report concluded that when used with permanent records, these annotations will cause more and more preservation problems and should be avoided.

I haven't found the original report on the Internet, but there are more technical details here, which have recently been confirmed by Chemical and Engineering News. The 3MFAQ page records the environmental friendliness of these notes, but according to the California Office of Recycling Regulations:

Most paper collectors and paper mills still treat sticky notes as a contaminant of high-quality paper. In addition, sticky notes are usually colored, which makes them unsuitable for recycling with white paper. Fluorescent sticky notes are particularly problematic for white paper recycling. From a recycling perspective, it is best to just avoid using sticky notes. Things that are advertised as friendly, removable, reversible, safe, or otherwise harmless (such as safety pins) always present special risks. What can be said about products that seem dangerous and permanent.