Environmental Papers in the In-plant

Can in-plants advance the use of environmentally friendly papers? The answer is yes. These days, cost, quality and availability are all on your side.

By Tyson Miller

The paper industry has come a long way in cleaning up its act in terms of mill discharges into waterways, pollution prevention and energy efficiency. Many of these improvements have occurred as a result of laws and government regulations.

Similar improvements in forest preservation, though, have yet to be made. The marketplace, not the government, will drive these changes. For that reason, in-plants can be a potent force for continued environmental improvements in paper.

There is a growing movement focused on improving the impacts of paper, and current efforts within the magazine, book, catalog and copy paper sectors endeavor to advance the cause. Despite the differences in paper characteristics and applications, the focus is still the same: maximize the use of recycled and Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) fiber as a means of reducing impacts on endangered forests.

The use of FSC-certified fiber and paper ensures that any "virgin" fiber in the paper was not sourced from an endangered forest, did not come at the expense of a converted forest, and did not originate from an area of social conflict. The use of recycled fiber reduces impacts on forests and saves natural resources as each ton utilized saves 12 to 24 trees, more than 2,000 pounds of greenhouse gases and 10,000 gallons of water.

In-plants can be a part of the solution by:

• Asking mills and merchants for information on environmental papers

• Communicating the value of environmentally responsible papers to customers

• Reducing the costs of environmental papers through bulk purchasing

• Developing a stocking program with merchants to make paper readily available

• Tracking and reporting usage and progress

A few years back, those pioneering companies that were asking for recycled and FSC papers dealt with price premiums up to 20 percent, a lack of product availability and quality issues. Today, increasingly more products with strong environmental attributes are readily available and in many cases are at or near cost parity.

With the growing corporate social responsibility movement in the marketplace, those mills and suppliers that are able to read market trends and meet new and emerging customer environmental needs will be the solutions providers that the market turns to.

Domtar is currently taking steps to obtain FSC certification for all of its forest lands—nearly 20 million acres.

"We plan to expand the range of papers certified to this [FSC] standard and open up access to a large and untapped potential market," says Raymond Royer, Domtar's president and CEO. The company has also participated with NGOs, government, and First Nations in the Boreal Leadership Council and in the development of the Boreal Conservation Framework in an effort to preserve the unique attributes of Canada's frontier forests.

When asked about the value of publishers and printers communicating their environmental goals, Domtar's Stephan Lariviere says, "It generally means opportunity. If publishers ask for papers with certain environmental criteria, Domtar will produce [the paper] if it makes good business sense."

Domtar recently announced the expansion of its EarthChoice line of products, which are both recycled and FSC certified. Likewise, other mills are investing in R&D and are developing new products to meet the growing demand for environmental papers.

Mohawk Paper Mills is also committed to pursuing environmental excellence. Mohawk works with environmental organizations to develop and certify its products and offers a range of Green Seal and FSC-certified papers. On June 1, Mohawk became one of America's largest consumers of non-polluting, wind-generated electricity for manufacturing. This renewable energy will be used to power Mohawk Options recycled papers, Mohawk Color Copy 100 PCW and the newly acquired Strathmore Writing System products. To let printers know the favorable environmental impact they are making by choosing recycled papers, Mohawk's Web site features an environmental calculator.

Most paper vendors have Web site links to explain their environmental efforts. Examples include:

• International Paper works in habitat restoration, applied forest research and partnership programs with environmental groups.

• Stora Enso has defined environmental performance targets for emissions, energy and fiber acceptability to maintain and achieve industry-leading performance on sustainability and environmental issues.

• Before returning water from its pulp-making process to the environment, Boise treats it rigorously to ensure it is clean and safe. Boise has also replaced elemental chlorine with chlorine dioxide in the pulp-bleaching process, eliminating the formation of dioxin compounds.

New Leaf Paper has been a leader in bringing environmental papers to market. New Leaf actively researches and works with mills to develop papers with some of the best environmental attributes available.

"Customer commitments to environmental goals is critical. Clear demand enables us to achieve manufacturing efficiency necessary to compete with existing paper options," says Jeff Mendelsohn, president of New Leaf Paper.

When asked what it will take for widespread industry shifts to take place, Mendelsohn says, "The most critical issue for a lasting shift toward sustainability in the paper industry is a consistent growing market for better environmental papers. Over time, this will result in more permanent shifts in supply side design and infrastructure."

Tyson Miller founded and directs the Green Press Initiative and also serves on the board of the Environmental Paper Network. He can be reached at:

tyson@greenpressinitiative.org

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Find Out More

www.environmentalpaper.org

www.conservatree.org

www.ecopaperaction.org

www.greenpressinitiative.org

www.marketsinitiative.org

www.newdream.org