A survey commissioned by Pitney Bowes and DMNews of 1,000 Americans found that "consumers value much of the direct mail they receive, but they also dramatically overestimate its true environmental impact:"

Consistent with other industry studies, consumers in this survey place a high value on the coupons (56 percent of consumers value them) and catalogs (44 percent) they receive in the mail. Mail also helps consumers start and maintain relationships with businesses and nonprofits, with 44 percent of respondents making their first purchase from a business and 33 percent making their first donation to a nonprofit because of a mail piece.

However, the survey also found that negative perceptions of mail’s environmental impact are based on widespread public misunderstandings. For example, only 2 percent of Americans correctly guessed that mail makes up just 2 percent of the nation’s municipal waste, while an astonishing 48 percent believe that mail is half of the content in the nation’s landfills.

Americans also believe, incorrectly, that mail delivery is a major contributor to carbon dioxide emissions. The truth is that mail delivery falls well below many other daily activities in its carbon footprint, such as taking a shower or using household appliances.

DMNews has more survey details available on its website.