Where do Albuquerque's donated books actually go?

How to read the diagram

The diagram reads left-to-right: donor sources on the far left, NMLP's hand-sort floor in the middle, and final destinations on the right. The width of each flow band is proportional to the intake-weighted percentage. Hover any band to see the exact percentage.

All percentages are operational measurements from NMLP warehouse intake logs through publication date. Methodology and supporting data published in the NMLP Transparency Report 2026.

Reading the donor sources

• Free home pickup (~55%) — donor calls or texts 702-496-4214; NMLP arrives at the door; any quantity, any condition. The dominant intake stream.
• 24/7 drop box at 5445 Edith Blvd NE (~22%) — donor drives over and leaves books in the outdoor bin any time of day or night. Common for closet cleanouts and small loads.
• Savers Albuquerque overflow recovery (~13%) — NMLP buys unsold book overflow from the Savers Carlisle and Mercantile locations on a multi-year ongoing basis. Documented end-of-chain partner.
• Assistance League overflow calls (~5%) — the Assistance League Thrift Shop at 5211 Lomas Blvd NE calls NMLP when book donations exceed their floor capacity; NMLP comes and clears.
• Master Fibers paper-recycler salvage (~5%) — NMLP purchases occasional book lots at Master Fibers, recovering salvageable copies before they enter the recycling stream. Observed lots include material believed to originate from Animal Humane Thrift Store's downstream pipeline (caveated as observed-but-not-formally-confirmed).

Reading the destinations

• Resale (~30%) — Amazon FBM, eBay, and specialist channels. Revenue funds the entire pickup + sort + free-routing operation.
• APS Title I schools (~18%) — children's books, bilingual readers, classroom-appropriate fiction. Direct hand-off to specific grade-level requests.
• Paper recycling (Master Fibers) (~18%) — salvage-only books (water-damaged, mold, broken spines, missing pages) routed to industrial paper recycling rather than landfill.
• Little Free Libraries (~12%) — active metro restock route covering Nob Hill, North Valley, Westside, East Mountains.
• Family shelters (~8%) — Joy Junction emergency family shelter, Barrett Foundation, others with kids' programs.
• Refugee resettlement (~6%) — Lutheran Family Services, Catholic Charities Albuquerque refugee program. High demand for Spanish, Arabic, Vietnamese, Dari, Kinyarwanda children's books.
• Pediatric waiting rooms (~4%) — UNM Children's Hospital and partner clinics.
• Landfill (<5%) — only books that are unrecoverable AND non-recyclable (severe contamination, hazardous condition). The destination this ecosystem exists to prevent.