At ATMs, gas stations and any time a machine asks me if I want a receipt, I always hesitate for a second, and then punch "yes."

Part of me -- a very retro part of me -- is comforted by that little scrap of paper that may prove I only withdrew $50, on the off-chance my bank informs me I withdrew $500. Even though that has never happened in the history of my ATM experiences. 

It's the same reason I routinely ignore the emails from my bank, utilities and credit card companies urging me to switch to paperless statements.

Somehow, I think that paper -- actual, tangible paper -- can protect me in case of showdown with giant corporation later on down the line.

Trouble is, I cram those scraps of paper in my wallet until the mess gets too unmanageable at which point I eventually lose them or toss them out. And, since I bank and pay bills online, I wind up tossing out filler and extra envelopes by refusing to switch to e-statements and paperless options.

In other words, I'm part of the problem.

I never really gave this much thought until I checked out Grist's Guide to How to Green Your Investments [1]. In their comprehensive list, they note that some 8 million times a year, Americans go their ATMs, and those tiny scraps of paper are now one of the top sources of litter on earth.

In fact, Market Watch [2] calculated that if we taped together all of these slips of paper, we'd get a roll more than 2 billion feet long -- enough to circle the equator 15 times. Talk about a paper trail.

So, from now on, I'll live the change [2] and just press "no" button when the ATM or gas station asks if I want a receipt. After all, it's easy (and litter-free) to keep an eye on my account via online banking.

At the same time, I think it's time to tell my bank, credit card company and utilities to switch me to paperless statements. As the Grist feature [3] points out, paying bills and managing statements from banks, credit card companies, mutual fund and brokerage groups and other financial institutions not only saves mega-tons of paper, it also saves time, stamps, mail-related fuel costs and the legs and backs of our tireless mail carriers.

Speaking of mail, another bonus is knowing I won't see any more bills when I open my mailbox.

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