Tissue Paper Trash Tissue paper cannot be placed in the recycling due to excess dye and paper fibers that are too short to be recycled. Please place used tissue paper in the trash container. Consider DonationIf you have still usable tissue paper that you no longer want, please donate. Visit Athens’ Material Reuse page for ideas. Ways to Reduce Use Something Else Instead of buying tissue paper, try cutting up an old magazine or other recyclable paper (such as regular paper or even newspaper) to use for your gifts. Did You Know? Technically, Tissue Paper Has Already Been Recycled Tissue paper is hard to recycle because it’s already been recycled: it’s made from recycled paper, so the fibers are shortened to the point where it cannot feasibly go through the recycling process again.