Tag Archives: post consumer waste paper

Be Cool, Print Green

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Will global warming cause huge disasters in the near future? Are we to blame? Scientists have determined that a number of human activities are contributing to global warming by adding excessive amounts of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. Driving cars and planes, using electricity from coal-fired power plants, or heating our homes with oil or natural gas, we release carbon dioxide and other heat-trapping gases into the atmosphere.

Global warming is getting worse causing some plants and animals to become extinct. The number of storms and floods are increasing and the sea levels are continuing to rise which may cause people to move away from the coasts. Some areas are becoming too dry for farming as well. There have been impacts on human health as mosquitoes and other disease-carrying insects and rodents are increasingly spreading diseases over larger geographical regions. The 10 warmest years on record have all occurred since 1990. Mountain glaciers are fading on every continent and the sea ice is melting.

It’s already too late to stop global warming completely, but you can help minimize it by using less energy. You can do simple things like turn off the lights when you leave a room, turn of the computer or TV when you’re not using it, take shorter showers, dress warmly when it’s cold, instead of turning up the heat etc.

Our environment should always be taken into consideration in both our personal and professional lives. Something that is constantly overlooked by businesses is the materials they use for printing. The paper and ink they’re using might be hurting the environment. Using post-consumer waste paper (PCW) is so much more environmentally friendly – it uses only recycled products in production. This prevents the unnecessary destruction of virgin tree fiber and helps preserve forestland and biodiversity. In the United States, currently 90% of our paper comes from virgin tree fiber, meaning that 90% of our paper is destroyed forest. Using PCW paper can help decrease the number of trees being cut down. The paper that most people are using is bleached with chlorine or chlorine derivatives. These chemicals can cause toxins and pollutants in several conditions. You should try to use paper that is Process Chlorine Free.

The ink you use can also be hurting the environment. Petroleum-based ink has VOCs, harmful toxins that can cause cancer and birth defects. VOCs are released when the ink dries on printed paper can even filter into the soil when printed paper is disposed of in a landfill. A healthier choice would be to use soy ink. It contains much less VOCs than petroleum-based inks and many people are already using it for magazines and other companies. Using eco-friendly printing is good for the environment and good for business. Customers will take preference in your business when they know you are putting an effort into helping the environment.

Our human drive to invent and build has led to extraordinary advances and great technological promise. It’s also had grave, unintended consequences. You can take action today to help reduce global warming by making environmental friendly choices in your daily and professional lives.

Post Consumer Waste Paper and Eco-Friendly Printing

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FSC Certified Paper

Corporate social responsibility issues are becoming a core component of corporate brands.  Dealing responsibly with your company’s footprint cannot only reduce risk, but can enhance your brand if you walk the walk and know how to talk about it.  Carrying the FSC-certification logo on your print products tells the world that you support the highest social and environmental standards in the market where you use paper.  Your purchase of FSC-certified paper and print products contribute to conservation, responsible management, and community level benefits for people near the forests that provide your paper.

The U.S. is the largest market for paper products in the world, producing 90 million tons of paper annually and, in-turn, consuming about 100 million tons.  Despite improved technologies for refining post consumer pulp, virgin fiber is still a significant requirement, as only 35% of current consumption is met by using recycled fiber; in addition, approximately 25% of recovered fiber is exported out of US markets.   Roughly 25% by volume of timber cut annually in the US is used for paper production. 

While recycled fiber is a key element of the traditional model for responsible consumption, it is becoming increasingly clear that forest management in the production of the wood used in paper manufacturing, has more fundamental importance than even recycled fiber.  The use of alternative fibers, chemical treatment and resulting effluence are other factors important to the responsible purchasing of paper and board.

Certification

Any product made of pulp or paper has the potential to be certified as long as the wood used in the product originates from FSC-certified sources.  Wood is an important material for all paper manufacturers.  The FSC certification system allows these professionals to know they are doing the right thing, and taking business away from other companies that may still be supporting illegal, unsustainable, unverified logging activities.  The intent of the FSC system is to shift the market to eliminate habitat destruction, water pollution, displacement of indigenous peoples and violence against people and wildlife that often accompanies logging.

Just like other forest products, in order to use the FSC logo as an “environmental claim” on paper, the product must have flowed through the FSC “chain-of-custody” from the FSC-certified forest, to a paper manufacturer, merchant, and finally printer who have FSC chain-of-custody certification.  To learn more about certification