Rethinking Paper and Ink: The Sustainable Publishing Revolution is a gem of a publication for anyone tackling the issue of sustainability within the publishing industry. The authors take an honest and thoughtful approach to the publishing process as it evolves from the author to the publisher to the printer to the bookseller, and while there are no perfect solutions for minimizing our collective footprint on the earth, there are numerous (and feasible!) eco-friendly options for industry professionals to incorporate. Rethinking Paper and Ink is a blueprint for action as well as a call for best practices whether one is contemplating the printed page or the next e-book device. I highly recommend this book. Deb Bruner Thomson-Shore, Inc. West Coast Sales Manager
This is the first in the OpenBook series of sustainably-produced books by Ooligan Press OOLIGAN PRESS
THE SUSTAINABLE PUBLISHING REVOLUTION OOLIGAN PRESS
Rethinking Paper and Ink: The Sustainable Publishing Revolution is Ooligan Press’s first title in the OpenBook series, so named because of our commitment to transparency in our efforts to produce a line of books using the most sustainable materials and processes available to us. All books in the OpenBook series will have the OpenBook logo on the front cover and a corresponding OpenBook Audit, which includes a calculated paper impact, on the inside. Uncoated, 70lb, 100% pcw fsc-certified paper supplied by Grays Harbor Paper in Hoquiam Washington, and distributed by West Coast Paper in Portland, Oregon. Cover: Uncoated, 20pt, unbleached, 100% (85% pcw) recycled fsc-certified chipboard manufactured by Sonoco in Washington and distributed by fsc-certified Spicers Paper in Portland, Oregon. Calculated Paper Impact:* Choosing 100% recycled paper over paper made from virgin tree fiber for the thousand copies of Rethinking Paper and Ink saved 2 million btus of total energy associated with paper production. Using 100% recycled paper likewise prevented the release of 1,250 gallons of wastewater, 160 pounds of carbon dioxide equivalent, and 9 pounds of Chemical Oxygen Demand. PAPER | Text:
INK | hi-Tech Soy ™ ink, manufactured and distributed in Portland, Oregon, by Great
Western Ink, contains 95% vegetable-based ingredients. The food-grade soybeans are grown conventionally by various soy farms in the Midwestern United States. PRINTING | An offset press was used for this book at Pinball Publishing in Portland,
Oregon. Pinball is committed to sustainable practices. Low-voc and biodegradable washes and developers, such as the Varn Ecolo Clean® by Day International, Inc., in Dayton, Ohio, were used in the process of making this book. BINDING | Rose
City Bindery, in Portland, Oregon, used a hot-glue melt made by the international Henkel Corporation. The glue contains paraffin waxes, petroleum, clay, and titanium dioxide. *Environmental impact estimates were made using the Environmental Defense Fund Paper Calculator. For more information visit http://www.papercalculator.org.
Rethinking Paper and Ink: The Sustainable Publishing Revolution Copyright Š 2009 Ooligan Press All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the publisher. Not for resale. This project was generously funded by a grant from the James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation. Ooligan Press Department of English Portland State University po Box 751, Portland, Oregon 97207 503-725-9410; fax: 503-725-3561 ooligan@pdx.edu www.ooliganpress.pdx.edu For information contact Ooligan Press at Portland State University, Portland, Oregon.
Rethinking Paper and Ink: The Sustainable Publishing Revolution Ooligan Press
Sustainability means meeting the economic, social, and environmental needs of the present without compromising the similar needs of future generations.
Rethinking Paper and Ink the sustainable publishing revolution
Contents Acknowledgments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Foreword by Wim Wiewel, PSU President . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Publishing and Sustainability by Eric Benson, Assistant Professor of Graphic Design, University of Illinois . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Sustainability at Ooligan Press . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 About Publishing and Sustainability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 The Life Cycle of a Book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Current Impacts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Best Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Industry Leader: Hemlock Printers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 E-books: A Paperless Alternative? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Producing This Book: A Creation Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Guide to Responsible Office Practices, Printing, and Paper Use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 PSU Campus Sustainability Office and the Center for Sustainable Processes and Practices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 Getting Involved at PSU: Academics, Green Teams, and Student Groups. . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Sustainable Studies Classes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Research Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Green Teams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38 Green Student Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Miller Grant Recipients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 Selected Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Small, Local Paper Distributors. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Ink Cartridge Recycling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Ink Manufacturers and Suppliers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Local Printers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Other Printers and Book Manufacturers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Paper Manufacturers and Distributors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Chelsea Green’s Green Partner Bookstores . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 Web Resource Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Certification Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Paper . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Sustainable Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 Sustainability Issues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 Portland State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50 Suggested Reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51 Works Cited . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 Glossary and Other Useful Terms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 Ooligan Credits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
1 | Rethinking Paper and Ink: The Sustainable Publishing Revolution
Acknowledgments This book would not have been possible without the inspiration and encouragement from our fearless leaders, Dennis Stovall, Abbey Gaterud, and Portland State University President Wim Wiewel. We are grateful for the generous grant from the James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation. This grant allows us to print and distribute our research and ideas to the psu community and beyond. Jennifer Allen, Noelle Studer-Spevak, Heather Spalding, Shpresa Halimi, and Sion Zivetz all lent their counsel and encouragement, helping shape our ideas into a viable project. Many thanks also to those in the industry who have so graciously and patiently helped us with our research: Deb Bruner, West Coast Sales Manager, ThomsonShore, Inc.; Eric Benson, Assistant Professor of Graphic Design, University of Illinois, and founder of re-nourish.com; Margo Baldwin, Publisher at Chelsea Green; Kelly Spitzner of Green Press Initiative; Toby Hemenway, author and permaculture expert; Holly Derderian of Spicers Paper; Gary Begg from Grays Harbor Paper; Jess Hirsch and Laura and Austin Whipple of Pinball Publishing; and Rebecca Wetherby of Environmental Paper and Print. The encouragement and advice we received from Paul Longo and Daniel Eckhart were essential to our success and well-being throughout this project. And of course, our endless gratitude to all of the students in Ooligan’s workgroups who helped to edit, design, and figure out all the necessary details to get this project done under extremely tight deadlines!
MELISSA BRUMER & JANINE ECKHART Co-managers and Founders of Ooligan Press’s Sustainable Publishing Initiative
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Foreword To learn about the business of publishing, students at Portland State University publish books. So how do students at psu learn about sustainability? By publishing a book, of course. At psu, we’re integrating sustainability throughout our curriculum, from courses in business and sociology to courses in architecture and engineering. Our goal is for a psu degree to represent not only completion of an academic program, but also having achieved literacy in sustainability. Opportunities like the publishing program and Ooligan Press represent what’s special about Portland State: a curriculum that reflects the needs and assets of our location in the Pacific Northwest, and one that provides leadership and innovation to the industry and craft of our community. One need look no further than to the quality of books published by Ooligan Press to see how this program has evolved, from a startup on a shoestring in 2001 to a center of excellence attracting students (and submissions) from across the country. That these students have decided to find better and more sustainable ways of printing and publishing should come as no surprise. But with apologies to Ooligan, these qualities of leadership and innovation are not exclusive to these students. In February 2009, undergraduate and graduate students from dozens of disciplines pitched their sustainability projects at the Student Idea Generator event. A bicycle loan program, a study of bamboo isoprene emissions, composting with worms—the enthusiasm and ideas presented reflected how embedded sustainability has already become in our campus culture. Ultimately we awarded nearly $70,000 to support the best of those ideas, including Ooligan’s “Sustainability in Publishing” project, enabling students to pursue new approaches and solutions to some of the problems we face as a campus and a society. If students can supply the energy and impetus, then the University will create the space for a living laboratory in which to explore and implement those ideas. Together we learn from one another while working toward a more sustainable future.
WIM WIEWEL
President, Portland State University
3 | Rethinking Paper and Ink: The Sustainable Publishing Revolution
Publishing and Sustainability The key component to understanding the concept of “sustainability� is to realize that everything on our planet is interdependent. Ecosystems rely on other ecosystems to function properly. As one becomes polluted or loses its intricate balance, each species and its related habitats are affected in some manner. Moreover, if a portion of the food chain is removed, the segments above and below it must adapt to this change. Some may survive, others may not. This naturally occurring concept also holds true for our economy. Each component of a specific industry (such as publishing) relies on its suppliers and associated industries (paper, transportation, marketing, etc.). Completely separate industries are similarly intertwined. If one economic sector fails, the ripple effect can be dramatic and may alter sectors connected by even the remotest link. These tremors can be clearly seen today as our economy shows signs that it is not functioning at a sustainable level. Specifically, within the publishing industry it is vital to recognize that we are not currently functioning at a sustainable level. The lifeblood of publishing is composed of energy and wood-fiber-based paper—all of which are finite and will eventually disappear. As it has been made abundantly clear in the political arena of the twenty-first century, our national energy policies are an abysmal failure. We rely on carbon-based sources of fuel (oil, coal) to power our manufacturing plants, offices, presses, and means of transportation. It is not a surprising revelation that we are consuming trees at a far faster rate than the speed at which they grow. Members of the publishing industry should see that as we all hope to continue growing our sector, we must not choose short-term monetary gains over long-term prosperity. We cannot continue to publish on non-renewable material using non-renewable energy sources that pollute the Earth; instead we must rethink how we function and how we produce our goods and services. No single solution exists; rather, there are hundreds of thousands of small changes that must be made. As everything is interconnected, our ideas must be too. The publishing industry cannot solve this massive problem alone; it will take the hard work and the enlightened visions of many disciplines working together to find new substrates that are made from renewable sources or ones that follow a cradleto-cradle model. These materials must be created and printed using the power of
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the sun, wind, earth, and sea. The damaging effects of fossil fuels will be felt for many decades, and the change must be swift to avoid long-term atmosphere, habitat, and water pollution. Do we value what we make? Would it bother us if publishing stopped? I believe the answer to both of these questions is “yes.� If this is true, then we must rethink how we publish in respect to its negative impact on the environment so we can sustain what we care about well into the future.
ERIC BENSON Assistant Professor of Graphic Design, University of Illinois Founder, www.re-nourish.com
5 | Rethinking Paper and Ink: The Sustainable Publishing Revolution
Sustainability at Ooligan Press Ooligan is a general trade press that publishes books honoring the cultural and natural diversity of the Pacific Northwest. Founded in 2001 as a teaching press, Ooligan is staffed by students pursuing master’s degrees in the Department of English at Portland State University. These students participate in an apprenticeship program under the guidance of a core faculty of publishing professionals dedicated to the art and craft of publishing. In the winter of 2009, a group of students led by Janine Eckhart and Melissa Brumer founded the Sustainable Publishing Initiative (spi) Workgroup within Ooligan Press. With the encouragement of their peers and mentors at Ooligan, they came up with a strategic plan to turn Ooligan Press into the only sustainable student-run teaching press in the country. This project, Rethinking Paper and Ink: The Sustainable Publishing Revolution, is the first major step toward that goal. Beyond this project, the spi Workgroup will exist as Ooligan’s in-house sustainability consultants, working with the press to identify opportunities to make more sustainable choices in every stage of book publishing, from acquisitions to design and marketing. spi will also help connect Ooligan Press to like-minded organizations such as the Green Press Initiative and other leaders in sustainable publishing and printing. Commitment to Sustainability Ooligan Press will become an academic leader in sustainable publishing practices. Using both the classroom and the business, we will investigate, promote, and utilize sustainable products, technologies, and practices as they relate to the production and distribution of our books. The publishing program will incorporate research and innovation into our current classes, with the aim of developing core curriculum devoted to sustainable publishing. Using Portland, the sustainable-industry leader, as a backdrop, Ooligan Press hopes to lead and encourage the publishing community by our example. Making sustainable choices is not only vital to the future of our industry—it’s vital to the future of our world. Rethinking Paper and Ink In February 2009, the spi Workgroup wrote and presented a proposal for Rethinking Paper and Ink: The Sustainable Publishing Revolution and received a grant from the
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James F. and Marion L. Miller Foundation. Our proposal was simple: to make a sustainable book about sustainable book-making. This is the result of that project. Normally Ooligan Press may take a year or more to publish a book after it’s been acquired. Rethinking Paper and Ink was researched, written, edited, designed, and produced in under five months. In this short time, we have met with printers and paper distributors as well as publishing and design professionals; attended online panels about sustainable publishing; and read many articles on sustainable practices—all while writing, designing, and editing this book. As with any intellectual inquiry, the more we learned, the more we saw how much we needed to know. Our research for this book was an excellent first step in educating ourselves about innovations in environmentally and socially responsible book publishing, but it was by no means exhaustive. Due to both the project’s short timeline and the huge amount of rapidly changing information on sustainable publishing, the work presented here is meant as an introduction to the subject and an inspiration, we hope, for further investigation both by Ooligan Press and the Portland State community in general. We’re proud of what we’ve produced and are eager to continue the work we’ve started here. Sustainability Initiatives at Ooligan Ooligan Press is pleased to join Kenneth Brown, President and ceo of the psu Bookstore, and Dresden Skees-Gregory, Sustainability Coordinator at psu, in signing the Book Industry Treatise on Responsible Paper Use. Developed by over twenty-five industry leaders (including Chronicle Books, Harvard University Press, and New Leaf Paper) and coordinated by the Green Press Initiative, the Treatise outlines seven industry goals. They range from responsible forest management and reducing production impacts to support for human rights in indigenous communities. The Treatise also calls for increased transparency in tracking industry progress toward these goals. Like many other departments and offices at psu, the publishing program and Ooligan Press are also looking for ways to reduce paper use by both faculty and students. Initial efforts include better use of the instructional computer labs for teaching classes, posting course documents on class blogs instead of printing handouts and syllabi, and using shared Google Docs for homework assignments. We estimate that these small, simple changes can reduce our paper consumption in the classroom by up to 50%.
7 | Rethinking Paper and Ink: The Sustainable Publishing Revolution
Steps Toward Sustainable Book Publishing Starting in Fall 2009, all of Ooligan’s books, marketing materials, and letterheads will be printed on Forest Stewardship Council (fsc)-certified recycled paper containing no less than 30% post-consumer waste (pcw). We expect to raise the minimum pcw content of these items to 50% within three years. Rethinking Paper and Ink: The Sustainable Publishing Revolution launches Ooligan’s new OpenBook series, which will include two books per year produced using the best practices available to us. Because time, money, knowledge, and technology can limit our choices—or make “the best” choices difficult to decipher—Ooligan has decided to place our most sustainably produced books in our OpenBook series. We chose the term OpenBook because it refers to the transparent route towards sustainability that we are committed to taking. We believe that by sharing the choices made for a given book in this series, we will avoid unintentional greenwashing and support responsible businesses. Efforts to produce this series as sustainably as possible focus on: » Sustainable paper and ink sources » Sustainable design strategies » Efficient and safe manufacturing and processing methods » Innovative printing technologies » Renewable energy sources » Corporate responsibility of our contractors » Minimal shipping of both raw materials and final products
A typical paper choice for the OpenBook series is fsc-certified, 100% pcw paper that is milled and pulped in the Pacific Northwest without the use of chlorine bleach. The inks are non-petroleum based, containing low or no volatile organic compounds (vocs). Books in this series are also designed with sustainability in mind, meaning: no ink bleeds off the page, avoiding non-recyclable laminates on covers, and being mindful of the amount of blank space and ink we use in a given design. In addition to these basic choices, Ooligan is committed to taking the best possible actions regarding other aspects of publishing, such as purchasing carbon offsets for shipping needs and keeping current with the growing body of research and innovations in the field of sustainable publishing.
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The first two major books in this series will be Cataclysms on the Columbia: The Great Missoula Floods and Classroom Publishing: A Practical Guide for Teachers. Cataclysms on the Columbia, updated by two psu professors, Scott Burns (Geology) and Marjorie Burns (English), is a fascinating look at the mystery surrounding the creation of the Columbia Basin. For years scientists had assumed that erosion was responsible for the spectacular scenery of the Gorge and its surroundings. But in the 1920s, J Harlan Bretz proposed that huge, catastrophic floods swept through the Pacific Northwest nearly 15,000 years ago. Bretz’s theory was ridiculed and challenged for nearly forty years until further research proved it to be correct. Cataclysms tells this spectacular story, and also provides a basic geologic tour of the area affected by these floods, including the city of Portland. Used in introductory university geology courses across the country, this book is an important part of the natural history of the Pacific Northwest and deserves to be introduced to a new generation of readers. Classroom Publishing: A Practical Guide for Teachers, by Dennis Stovall and Laurie King, was first published by Blue Heron Publishing in 1992. Using stories from classrooms across the country, the first edition of Classroom Publishing explored how using the publishing process in the classroom can get students excited about language and writing. This new and totally revised edition was first acquired by the students at Ooligan Press in 2007. Since then, they have interviewed hundreds of teachers nationally, attended and presented at national conferences, and produced a guide for teachers interested in using publishing techniques in their own classrooms. Collaborating with psu’s School of Education, the National Council of Teachers of English, and Columbia University’s Student Publishing Initiative, Ooligan students—publishing from the classroom themselves—have brought this book into the technology and internet age. Included in the book is a section on how teachers can choose the best publishing practices to make their own projects as sustainable as possible. Costs of producing books sustainably can run higher than for traditional production. Most of these costs are incurred in the production and printing of a book, with paper, ink, binding glue, and proximity of the printer to the book’s final destination all being factors that have to be considered. To meet the increased costs associated with sustainable book production, we will continue to seek funding from grants and donations.
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About Publishing and Sustainability Before we can understand what it means to publish in a sustainable way, we have to understand the process of making a book, and we have to find out where the problem areas are along that process. The following section considers these questions: What is the life cycle of a book? What are the impacts of making a book from a triple bottom line perspective? And, finally, how do we lessen those impacts as publishers? The Life Cycle of a Book We’ve broken down the life cycle of a book into four main areas based on the actual and potential impacts each has on the long- and short-term health of society, the environment, and the economy. The processes below differ from publishing house to publishing house, as do the roles and titles of the people and departments. Ooligan Press serves as the general model for this simplified example: ACQUISITION, EDITING & DESIGN | A
manuscript is submitted to the publisher, and the acquisitions editors either reject it or accept it, with or without conditions. The manuscript is then sent to the editing department where it undergoes varying degrees of editing. Once the manuscript is edited and typecoded, it moves to the design department where the cover and interior are designed and sent to the printer. Book designers are responsible for turning the well-developed idea for a book into a material object. MARKETING & SALES | The marketing and sales departments are typically involved
with the project from the moment the manuscript is acquired. They decide what type of marketing collateral is appropriate to produce and where to direct their marketing attempts. Because of their knowledge of the marketplace, marketing and sales people also play a large role in shaping other major aspects of a book—from determining the style or tone a book should have based on the demographics of its target audience to determining the retail price and recommended print run of a given book based on the projected demands in the market. PRINTING & BINDING | The digital files for the book are sent to the printer. A printer
typically will use either an offset or digital press to produce the book and gets the
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paper and ink either directly from the manufacturer or from a distributor. Once the print run is finished, the folded and gathered (f&g) sheets are bound (usually in-house) with the jacket or cover. The books are then delivered, distributed, and either sold or not. THE EVER AFTER | The book is either sold or not. The unsold books end up in the
recycling bin of a bookstore or back with the publisher. The publisher may do a number of things with excess or damaged inventory books: offer them to the author, donate them to schools and libraries, put them in storage, remainder them, or pulp them. The sold books end up circulating throughout houses, schools, second-hand bookstores, etc., and eventually are either stored on a shelf or disposed of. So both sold and unsold books have the same fate: storage or disposal. But in the context of the triple bottom line, which takes into account social, environmental, and economic impacts, the unsold and sold books have different values. The books that are sold have both economic and social value, which ideally offsets their environmental costs. The books that are not sold, however, simply have negative value. Current Impacts All of the practices and processes involved in the life cycle of the book have triple bottom line impacts representative of the publishing industry. In fact, according to the Green Press Initiative, books have a negative impact on the environment even after they are printed: Books…cause Greenhouse gasses to be released to the atmosphere throughout their life cycle. The U.S. book industry emits approximately 12.4 million metric tons of Greenhouse gasses (ghg) (carbon equivalent) annually (the paper industry is the fourth largest ghg contributor among all U.S. manufacturing industries) and the average book is responsible for the release of 8.85 pounds of Greenhouse gasses (carbon equivalent).1
Given the time and space constraints of this book, most of our focus will be on the environmental impacts of printing and binding and the rest of a book’s life. This book is the first step in an ongoing research initiative at Ooligan and is not an exhaustive resource.
1 Green Press Initiative, “Reducing Climate Impacts,” page 3
11 | Rethinking Paper and Ink: The Sustainable Publishing Revolution Relative Portion of Book Industry Greenhouse Gas Emissions, published by Green Press Initiative Segments of the Industry
Share of Carbon Emissions in Percentages
Notes
Forest and Forest Harvest
62.7
Harvest and transport of fiber to the mill constitute only 1.52%; the remainder, 61.22%, is removals of biomass from the forest. A portion of the latter is offset by storage in books, recycling of books, and energy recovery.
Paper Production, Printing Impacts
26.6
Paper production at the mill constitutes 22.4%; the remainder, 4.16%, is printing and binding.
Landfill Releases (methane)
8.2
Methane releases from landfilled books.
Distribution and Retail Impacts
12.7
Distribution is for books to the market; retail energy is consumed in stores.
Publishers’ Impacts
6.6
Publishers’ impacts are energy used in offices, internal paper consumption, and business travel.
–16.8
Books store a portion of the carbon from biomass in the products themselves; incinerating waste, although it has some of its own environmental risks, recovers some energy.
Carbon Storage in Books and Energy Recovery
The largest portion of emissions come from paper use: loss of biomass when trees are cut to use for pulp, the energy used to produce paper, and the methane released when the paper degrades in landfills.* Measurements of Greenhouse gas emissions represent contributions to global warming— which has an effect on all three bottom lines: social, environmental, and economic. *Green Press Initiative, “Reducing Climate Impacts,” page 1
ACQUISITION, EDITING & DESIGN | Submissions from authors are typically mailed
to a publisher as hard copies. It’s not uncommon for authors, in their excitement, to overlook the editorial guidelines for submissions. Many submissions don’t fall within the scope of what the publisher accepts. These, along with others that don’t make the cut, are thrown away or recycled. (Recycling is a better alternative to landfills but should be thought of as a second-best alternative to reducing the use of materials.)
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In addition, acceptance and rejection Paper, Ink & Toner letters may be printed and sent for Paper manufacturing uses 42% every submission that comes in. These of all industrial wood harvested. are traditional practices that are falling The chemicals typically involved in paper production (primarily increasingly to the wayside. The same pulping and bleaching) are applies to the editing department where highly toxic to both people and the environment. Ink is usually editors often still prefer to work with hard petroleum-based (although more copy. A considerable amount of waste—and and more inks are becoming soy- or vegetable-based)—which money—can be saved by making all of this means that the materials are noncorrespondence electronic. renewable, contain high levels of Book designers are traditionally most volatile organic compounds (vocs), and make the de-inking process concerned with producing the best qual(necessary for recycling), relatively ity for the best price. Aesthetics and profit difficult. Toner, a polymer powder that is heat-fused in the digital are the driving motives, which means that printing process, is extremely fine the margins on the page may not be spaceand lingers in the air. Toner has potential health risks, cannot be efficient; there is often heavy use of inks recycled, and is also difficult to that bleed off the page (which requires de-ink. excess paper and ink); color pictures, photos, charts, and tables may be used simply for aesthetic appeal; and the cover will likely be laminated with a polymer. Some designs require certain qualities of paper, which may exclude recycled varieties. Designers can make subtle yet significant changes to yield a more sustainable book. The thought processes and perspectives of designers have a far-reaching impact on sustainability, as we will address in the Responsible Practices section. MARKETING & SALES | Most
marketing material comes in the form of paper and ink: bookmarks, shelf-talkers, posters, postcards, blads (Book Layout and Design—a mockup), galleys, etc. These items add to the peripheral consumption of paper, ink, and toner used in the production of a book. Office Energy Consumption According to the Green Press Initiative’s report Reducing Climate Impacts, “almost 90% of all office energy consumption is used for lighting, heating, cooling, and ventilation, office equipment, and water heating.”
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PRINTING & BINDING | Most
of the environmental impacts of the publishing industry are by-products of the paper-manufacturing process. Thousands of gallons of water, toxic chemicals, and large amounts of energy are required for each ton of paper produced. At the printer, all the elements of a book come together. They get the paper, the ink, and the manuscript, and they turn it into a book with the help of a bindery (often on-site). The printers are responsible for choosing which types of paper to supply to their customers and where that paper comes from (pulp and paper mills). They can also specify the sources of fiber, whether sustainable or not. Trees are classified into two major categories: hardwood and softwood. One of the biggest differences between the two classifications is fiber length. Hardwoods (oaks and maples) have shorter fibers, which make the paper smoother but not as strong as the rougher, long-fibered paper created by softwoods (pine and spruce). Most paper uses a combination of the two in order to achieve the desired strength and smoothness. Most of the paper manufactured in the Pacific Northwest comes from Douglas fir or pine trees. Douglas firs live for about thirty to forty years before they are harvested for paper; pine live for about fifteen years.
PAPER | Pulp
and paper mills turn fiber from trees and recovered paper into new paper. Annual global paper consumption as of 2007 was more than 350 million tons. The manufacturing processes required to produce that paper release toxic heavy metals and dioxins that are known to cause cancer, nerve disorders, and infertility. When pulp and paper mills aren’t in the same location, there are additional impacts from transportation to consider. Virgin Fiber Fewer and fewer mills own their own forests or tree farms; more often they buy pulp on the open market. In some cases, the natural forest land purchased for timber use creates major conflicts between the corporations who buy the land and the indigenous peoples they displace. Most trees used for paper come from natural forests (rather than tree farms) where the ecology is drastically changed in the process of deforestation. Deforestation, or the removal of biomass from forests, accounts for “by far the largest source of emissions in the life cycle of most books…61.22% of total emissions, though a portion (18.6%) is stored in the book itself.”2 The harvested trees can no longer absorb carbon and release oxygen, so the carbon stays in the air. 2 Green Press Initiative, “Reducing Climate Impacts,” page 5
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Once the trees are harvested, they go to the mill to be pulped—either chemically, mechanically, or by a combination of the two. Although the mechanical process is more efficient at converting tree mass to paper mass, the chemical process is much more widely used—mainly because it leaves more fibers intact and removes more lignin (a naturally occurring polymer responsible for the stiffness of trees and plants) than mechanical processing, leaving a smoother surface. Both the chemical and mechanical processes of pulping have ecological and social health implications based on material use, energy use, and waste production. Besides deforestation, the effluent from pulp mills is also a major concern. Effluent from paper production is a major source of pollution—it contains chlorates, dioxins, heavy metals, chelating agents, as well as the fine solids formed by the removed lignin. The most common chemical process for pulping wood is called kraft pulping. The kraft process uses sodium hydroxide and sodium sulfide, as well as a number of processing chemicals. One of the most harmful of these processing chemicals is the elemental chlorine (liquid), or chlorine dioxide (gas) used for bleaching the pulp. Both forms of chlorine produce dioxin, the most dangerous carcinogen known to humankind. Chlorine dioxide produces less dioxin, but is also a combustible gas. Because of the large amounts of water required for the pulping process, pulp mills are typically located near rivers or other large bodies of water. The waste from the krafting process becomes an effluent and is commonly released into the nearby water source. The fine lignin solution settles on the floor of the river or lake, ultimately suffocating the body of water and creating an environment unable to sustain life. Some of the chemical pollutants found in pulp mill effluent, such as toxic heavy metals, are fat-soluble and biologically magnified—they are passed on in greater quantities as they move up the food chain. Recycled Fiber Paper and pulp mills producing recycled papers receive bundles of recovered paper from businesses and recycling facilities that gather paper from all over the city or county. The recovered paper is sorted and then pulped thermally, mechanically, and chemically. The recycled fiber then goes through additional stages; it is strained to remove foreign items such as staples and paper clips, chemically cleaned and de-inked, refined, and usually bleached. In the de-inking process, chemicals remove ink from the paper, and foaming agents help foam the solution and bring the ink to the top of the mixture where it can be removed, collected, and burned for fuel before finally being turned into concrete gravel. Every
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100,000 dry pounds of recovered paper produces about 35,000 dry pounds of collected reusable materials from the flotation process. Unfortunately, paper can only be recycled four to six times before the fibers become too broken-down for use. Long-term paper recycling depends on the continued use of virgin fibers, because it is not an infinitely recyclable material. Whether virgin or recycled, the pulp is turned into paper by draining, heating, pressing, and rolling it flat. Any coatings or laminations (many are clay and petroleum-based) are added at the mill. The paper is then shipped to distributors and ultimately to the printers who carry specific types of paper based on customer demand. PRINTERS | The impacts of a printer depend on a number of factors: whether they
use offset (lithographic) or digital presses, where they buy their inks and toner, what kind of paper they use, what kind of cleaners (for the offset presses) they use, and how their presses are powered. There are a number of different types of presses—here we consider offset and digital. Offset presses require a certain amount of calibrating for each print job—which means setting up the plates, ink, and paper, and running the press so that the color and registration can be adjusted. All the paper, ink, and energy used to prepare the press for the print run is waste (though the paper is usually turned into preconsumer waste). This waste is referred to as make ready and can make up about 10% of the entire print job. The inks typically used with offset printers are petroleum-based and have a low evaporation point, which means that some compounds in the ink are readily absorbed into the air. These compounds are called vocs (volatile organic compounds). Once they’re in the air, they react with nitrogen and form ozone. vocs are bad for the environment and pose serious health risks, as some are known carcinogens. In addition to containing vocs, petroleum-based inks are made from a non-renewable resource, petroleum. Because each color requires a clean plate and clean rollers, every ink color used on an offset press typically requires about four to eight ounces of cleaners or washes, rags, and water. The cleaning solution usually has the highest concentration of vocs of any solution used in the entire printing process. However, there are more ecologically friendly cleaners available. One example of an “ecological” cleaner is Ecolo Clean®. Ecolo Clean® is considered to have a low concentration of
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vocs and to be an ecologically safer cleaner. According to the Material Safety Data Sheet for Ecolo Clean®, it contains 2.5 pounds of vocs per gallon of solution. So even a low-voc cleaning solution may still contain at least 30% vocs.3 Offset presses are relatively versatile when it comes to the kinds of papers they can handle. However, paper made with non-wood fibers is often not an option. Digital printers, on the other hand, are more particular about the types of paper they will work with. Offset presses are typically used for larger print runs. Digital presses traditionally have had a difficult time printing on recycled paper (though this is changing) and are more limited in terms of sheet sizes. Most digital printers use toner, which has been known to cause respiratory problems and is being tested for other suspected health risks. The powder used in toner is petroleum-based and cannot be recycled. Digital presses are typically used for smaller print runs. BINDING | Many
printers have an on-site bindery. A number of different binding options exist, but here we focus on the most common technique for trade paperbacks: perfect binding. Perfect binding is the easiest method to bind a book, but it is also one of the least durable. f&g sheets are glued together at the spine to the cover of the book. The adhesive used is a hot-glue melt and is made up of a mixture of petroleum-based polymers, waxes (animal, plant, or petroleum based), and/or resins (plant based). The glue is applied at room temperature and then heated to adhere to the paper. As it cools, the glue solidifies. Hot glue has vocs that are only considered harmful when they are released during the heating process. Hot glue melted on books can create obstacles in the recycling process. Not only does the heat involved in the recycling process release vocs, but also—and more technically problematic—the glue becomes sticky again and can stick to the machinery and adhere to the fibers in the pulp mash. Another type of glue, similar to hot glue, is cool glue or cold glue. Cold glue uses less energy, releases lower levels of vocs, and is easier to recycle. Unfortunately, this book is too thick for the weaker binding properties of cold glue. It simply wasn’t a practical option for our perfect-bound book—one of the many trade-offs we had to make in this process when weighing sustainable and practical considerations.
3 The solution has a specific gravity lower than water, which means that one gallon of the solution weighs less than 8.3 pounds (weight of one gallon of water at room temperature).
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THE EVER AFTER | Because
the financial cost per book decreases as the print run increases (this only applies to offset print jobs), the book’s print run is usually larger than what is expected to sell. Waste is a given with any offset print run. There are often incentives from printers and major bookstores for publishers to float the bill for a large number of books, knowing that they likely will not sell them all. The way the industry is currently set up Shipping & Distribution (though this is changing), major bookBecause books are relatively heavy, stores determine how long a book will and the best-priced print jobs often sit on a retail shelf—usually about two come from overseas printers, it is often assumed that shipping and weeks. Since the publisher ends up cardistribution costs are a large factor rying the financial cost of the waste, it is in the costs and impacts of a book. more cost-effective for the bookstore to Printing overseas certainly adds to the carbon footprint of a book and clear a shelf and put new books in place is something that can be remedied than to continue stocking old titles. by choosing local or regional printers and vendors. Choosing a Depending on the agreements between local or regional printer is the most all parties involved, the bookstore may rip sustainable choice. The carbon impact of the distribution of books to the cover off the books (sometimes just retail stores is less than 12.7% of the to prove that they’re damaged) and send total impact of the book publishing them off for pulping, throw the books industry.* However, this does not account for the transportation of directly into a recycling bin, or return proofs from printer to publisher and the books to the publisher or distributor back, of F&G sheets from printer to binder (if the printer does not have an intact. The first two choices have the same in-house bindery), or of books from result: pulping the book. The third choice binder to warehouse to distributor to wholesalers to bookstores—and can send the book through a number of potentially back through most of additional steps before it is sent to the these channels again if the book is pulper. The structure of this system makes not sold. * Green Press Initiative, “Reducing Climate Impacts,” page 2 it difficult for the publisher and the author to make money. There are also considerable environmental impacts at the end phase of a book’s life: transportation, landfill emissions, and pulping. We’ve already covered the impacts of transportation and pulping, which leaves us to consider the impact of a book that ends up in a landfill. Among other concerns, as books decompose in landfills, they emit methane gas, which is about twenty times more potent as a Greenhouse gas than carbon and is highly flammable.
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Best Practices ACQUISITION & EDITING | Acquiring
editors with sustainable objectives should ask deeper questions than simply, “Will it sell?” They may want to ask: What is the societal value of the potential book? Is it worth the environmental and social costs? Would this book be better off existing as an e-book only? It is important for everyone involved in sustainable publishing to understand what “cost” and “value” mean in the context of the triple bottom line. Using a combination of e-books and paper books will be vital to the success of future publishers. Certain titles may be better off as e-books, while others should be printed. As publishers and acquisitions editors, rethinking the submission guidelines of your company can help avoid wasting time, energy, and materials. (See E-books: A Paperless Alternative? in the next section.) Another easy and effective way to reduce waste and cost is to require all submissions and other correspondence between acquiring editors and authors to be nt via e-mail only. Stop printing and using paper unless you have to. The same rule applies to editors. Rather than working on hard copy, work on digital files and correspond via e-mail with authors and other editors. Teach the authors how to use editing features such as Microsoft Track Changes. Again, only print when necessary. DESIGN | To approach book design in a sustainable way, the first step is to commit to
staying informed about the materials and processes your designs require. Rather than considering only the needs of the author and the reader, take into consideration the larger picture: the immediate and long-term needs of the environment and society. In the cradle-to-cradle (c2c) model of production, sustainability is incorporated into the design of the book itself. The idea of c2c is to use designs and production techniques that are as efficient as possible and essentially waste-free (sometimes this theory is also referred to as closed-loop). In c2c designs, the recyclability or reusability of a product is designed into it from the start—the endof-life phase of the product is planned for when producing the initial design. This is different from the old cradle-to-grave model that we use now in which products are designed to be consumed with the assumption they will be thrown out or recycled. For more information on c2c, see the resource guide in the back of the book.
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Sustainable Design Checklist from re-nourish.com » Ask more “why” questions. Why is this project necessary? Why are we doing it this way? » Ask more “what if” questions. What if we did this? What if we minimized effort here and exerted more here? » Ask more “how” questions. How is this piece going to impact the world while in production and after? How can I minimize these impacts? » Minimize and simplify your design. » Design for cycles (reuse, remanufacture). » Design for durability, not obsolescence. » Choose vendors that use renewable energy. » Optimize your process, reduce your print waste, and make sure to use non-toxic materials. » Support sustainable forestry: choose post-consumer waste (PCW) paper and FSC-certified vendors. » Rely on other designers and vendors as a community of support.
MARKETING & SALES | Environmentally
friendly publishers can apply marketing practices to communicate their corporate responsibility and sustainable practices to the public. A company’s commitment to sustainability can be used as a marketing tool to promote the company and to effect change in the industry by encouraging demand for sustainable publishing practices. Include sustainable publishing education as part of your marketing strategy. It is important to avoid greenwashing or disingenuously representing your company as environmentally friendly. The best way to do this is with a company committee responsible for staying informed on current sustainability research and tracking and analyzing the materials and processes in action. Sales staff should also be educated about publishing sustainably and what measures are in place to avoid greenwashing so that they can effectively communicate those issues to the public. Additionally, think twice before you decide to create marketing collateral using paper and ink: How effective is the strategy? What are the real costs? Can the same message reach the same audience through other, non-material means? Focus on internet marketing, networking, and creating audience loyalty by means of branding, word of mouth, and viral marketing techniques.
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Other ways a publishing company can make an effort to become more sustainable can be found in the Responsible Practices guide in the back of this book. PRINTING & BINDING | Because the largest financial, ecological, and social costs of
publishing a book are directly related to paper, it is very important to know your printer. What is their commitment to sustainable practices? How is their business powered? What paper, ink, and printing options are available? And where and how are their outsourced materials manufactured? What do they use to clean their offset printers? Who does their binding and how? BETTER MATERIALS | There are no clear-cut answers to some of the issues in paper
manufacturing and printing; there are almost always trade-offs to be made. Here is a list of options for the materials and processes we have discussed so far: » Paper—The most sustainable option is fsc-certified, process chlorine-free (pcf), uncoated paper produced as locally as possible with the highest percentage of postconsumer recycled content available. Another promising alternative is polymeric paper, which was used for the book Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things. To learn more about Cradle to Cradle, see our Resources Guide. » Ink and Toner—Try to avoid products containing vocs if possible. Use soy-based inks (make sure to find out what percentage of the ink is soy, as many have a high percentage of petroleum oil) or vegetable-based inks, preferably grown organically and as locally as possible. Though currently only made in black, soy toner is available as well. The hp Indigo Press is a specialized digital press, used primarily for color printing, that scores high in terms of efficiency, quality, and environmental impacts. The toner used for the Indigo is a liquid, not a powder, and can reproduce process colors with excellent accuracy. » Digital or Offset—There are costs and benefits to each of these choices. We believe that efficient digital presses, such as the hp Indigo or Xerox’s Nuvera, are currently the most sustainable choices for short print runs. However, until digital technology catches up, print runs of 1,000 or more copies are better off with offset printing that uses little or no vocs in production. » Cleaners—This applies to offset printers. The alcohol-free cleaning and washing solutions now available are a better choice than alcoholic cleaners, because their evaporation point is higher. The evaporation of vocs from cleaners poses an immediate health risk. So the ideal cleaner would be both voc- and alcohol-free.
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To reduce the social impacts of the paper industry, Green Press Initiative recommends the following: The industry should respect and support local economies and businesses, reversing the trend towards ever-larger industrial units, and promoting communityownership and a diversity of small- and medium-sized enterprises in the paper sector. Production systems must not jeopardize environmental services or ecosystem assets, such as water quality, and their equitable use. The paper industry should use the best available technology to minimize the use of water, energy, chemicals, and other raw materials; minimize emissions to air and water, solid waste, and thermal pollution, to eliminate toxic waste and mill discharges; and reduce product brightness to reduce bleaching levels and eliminate the use of chlorine and chlorine compounds for bleaching. Any new pulp-mill developers must demonstrate environmentally and socially sustainable sources of fiber. Companies should recognize that they are a part of a larger land-use system and should take into account the indirect effects of their land use, such as displacement of pressure for land.4
The book industry is rapidly implementing practices that minimize negative social and environmental impacts. Over 160 publishers, representing about 40% of the book industry’s market share, have either developed strong environmentally friendly policies or signed Green Press Initiative’s industry-generated treatise on responsible paper use. The treatise has also been endorsed by more than a dozen book printers and paper mills.5 As for binding, sewn or saddle-stitched options are the most environmentally sound, as well as the easiest to recycle. However, they are not always the most practical. If there is a way to adapt your book design to make one of these binding options feasible—problem solved. If not, research your options for hot and cold glue melts. There may be less toxic options available. THE EVER AFTER | The
messy end-of-life phase of a book is the product of bad infrastructure. As the publishing industry changes to become more sustainable, the amount of waste and overproduction will be reduced. This is the area where policy changes need to happen, and companies need to start competing with more than 4 Green Press Initiative, “Environmental Paper Network: Social Impacts of the Paper Industry” 5 Green Press Initiative, greenpressinitiative.org, “About: Book Sector”
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one bottom line in mind. So, what can a sustainability-minded publisher do? Avoid overproduction as much as possible. » Print using print-on-demand (pod), preferably in the publishing house or as local as possible, by using efficient digital presses with hardware such as the Indigo. Bind in-house if possible, or use a local bindery. This would cut down on overproduction, waste, and pollution generated by offset printing, the needless Greenhouse gasses emitted by the back-and-forth traveling of the unsold book, and the need to store excess books. » Utilize the e-book and print selectively, using pod when possible. » Give incentives to retailers to adopt a no-returns policy. Margo Baldwin, publisher of Chelsea Green Publishing, helped to start their “Green Partners” program in which retailers are given incentives to adopt a no-returns policy, and it has been successful so far. Over forty retailers are listed as “Green Partners,” including the Portland State University bookstore.
Industry Leader: Hemlock Printers While researching this book, we discovered several innovative ways that publishers, printers, and mills are moving toward a sustainable future and acting as catalysts in the sustainable publishing revolution. Hemlock Printers is an excellent example. An emphasis on environmental stewardship is evident in every aspect of Hemlock’s business practices and operations, not just in what they produce. Focusing on efficiency, recycling, smart purchasing, and developing methods that minimize the use of harmful compounds, the Vancouver, bc-based printer is a twotime winner of the PrintAction Environmental Printing Award, most recently for being one of Canada’s most environmentally progressive printers. In 2008, they won the Heidelberg Eco Printing Award for “Most Sustainable Printing Company.” As the first fsc-certified chain-of-custody printer in the Pacific Northwest, as well as the first printer in North America to commit to an Ancient Forest Friendly policy, Hemlock prints at least 40% of its jobs on paper containing at least 10% post-consumer recycled content. They provide eco-audits for all of their jobs and offer ecoalternatives on all print bids to raise awareness among customers who might have assumed that traditional paper and print choices are the only affordable options. Hemlock uses offset presses for larger jobs and very resource-efficient hp Indigo digital presses for shorter runs. With offset jobs, the company created an awardwinning program called Off Cuts for Charity, which provides printing services to
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qualified charitable organizations by offering otherwise-empty space on existing print runs, thus utilizing the entire press sheet. In their low-odor pressroom, all printing is alcohol-free. Blanket washes mix with water and evaporate so slowly that volatile emissions are at a minimum. Process waters are reused multiple times before on-press evaporation or in-developer treatment. Waste solvents and old rags are used as a clean-burning fuel; the ash is later used for cement making. Hemlock uses inks low in vocs and calculates the amount of ink needed for each job before it begins, reducing waste. Any leftover ink is mixed to make custom colors and stored for later use. Hemlock estimates that these measures save almost one metric ton of ink annually. In 2004, Hemlock formed a Sustainability Committee. The committee consists of managers who identify ways to improve the print process and practicable ideas for increasing sustainability and environmental awareness company-wide. One such idea was to set up a collection point for used electronic appliances and equipment for repair or recycling. This easy diversion of e-waste has kept over 2,000 pounds of techno-trash out of landfills. In the office, Hemlock uses only 100% pcw office paper and organic, fairtrade coffee. Light sensors adjust output to reduce power consumption. Half of Hemlock’s fleet is run on biodiesel (carbon offsets are purchased for the rest), and they recycle all paper, metals, wood palettes, compostable materials, batteries, lightbulbs, electronics, wastewater, and over 90% of all hard and soft plastics. Hemlock even rearranges carpet tiles in the office until they are all evenly worn before sending them back to the manufacturer for recycling. Hemlock Printers teaches us that sustainable practices work in the book industry— as business models, and as catalysts for change.
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E-books: A Paperless Alternative? While many have pointed to the rise of e-books as a more sustainable way to read, there are opposing viewpoints. E-books and e-book readers have been around for quite a while, but it took the release of the Sony Reader in 2006 for them to enter the consciousness of the general public. In 2007, Amazon released the first version of their Kindle reader to positive reviews, and in October 2008, Oprah Winfrey endorsed it on her talk show. The Kindle weighs a little more than 10 ounces and has about the same dimensions as a trade paperback. Most of the 125,000 titles available for the Kindle are priced at $9.99, and all may be downloaded to the reader immediately upon purchase. Kindle is praised for its ease of use, its portability, and its e-ink electronic paper display. While the Sony Reader requires a pc and Windows operating system to transfer files onto the device, Kindle has no compatibility requirements, as it connects directly to the Amazon store over Sprint’s cellular network. Other popular portable electronic devices—the iPhone, Blackberry, and other “smart” handhelds— can display some e-book file types, but none were designed with book-reading as a primary function. Some publishers, like Random House and Penguin, have adopted e-readers for in-house use, reducing paper consumption by outfitting editors and salespeople with e-readers.6 Acquisitions editors can read, review, and make notes on incoming manuscripts without printing a single sheet. Salespeople can carry hundreds of books with them as they make their rounds, downloading to the reader only the ones they’d like to read, and they can get new titles and updates from the home office anywhere within range of a cellular signal or internet connection. There is a clear consumer interest in e-books, but so far no definitive data exists to suggest e-book sales are cutting into paper-book sales. In 2008, Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s founder and ceo, told a panel at BookExpo America that many Kindle owners are buying the same book twice—one electronic copy for the Kindle and one paper copy, perhaps for the bathtub. Though book sales of new titles slacked off in 2007,7 Simon & Schuster reports that electronic book sales increased by 40% from 2006 to 2007.8 6 Wyatt, Edward, “Electronic Device Stirs Unease at Book Fair” 7 bnet, “Bowker Reports U.S. Book Production Flat in 2007” 8 Wyatt, Edward, “Electronic Device Stirs Unease at Book Fair”
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On the surface, e-books seem to be more sustainable; they are, after all, nothing but digital signals able to be interpreted by any number of devices and displayed to readers as words on a screen. They have none of the shipping issues that plague books. Compared to the energy required to ship a print run of a few thousand books from the printer in China to the distributor in America, and from that distributor to individual stores, e-books use virtually no energy to ship. The e-books themselves are not material objects, but information, which is infinitely sustainable; e-books do not take up space in landfills or even have to be recycled for re-use. Where the device itself comes in, things get trickier. Kindles and Sony Readers are made of the same materials that computers are made of—plastics, heavy metals, and batteries. While there haven’t been any serious life-cycle studies done on e-book readers or even the pdas used as e-book readers, it is possible to approximate the sort of environmental impact these devices can have by analyzing their components. A 2004 study by Michael Toffel and Arpad Horvath published in Environmental Science and Technology did just that and further compared the energy requirements for reading the electronic version of The New York Times to those of reading the print version. Their summary was decisive: compared to using a pda to read The New York Times, reading a hard copy of the paper resulted in the release of 32–140 times more CO2 and the use of 26–185 times more water, depending on the number of people who read the same paper and the recycled content of the newsprint.9 It is a safe guess that reading the newspaper on an e-book reader or your home computer instead of buying the print version of that paper is the more sustainable choice. However, it’s worth noting that Toffel and Horvath assume device replacement every three years; more frequent replacement of e-book readers will, of course, make them somewhat less sustainable—but still not enough to make print newspapers the more sustainable option. Print books and print newspapers are, of course, different—but not different enough to offset the huge CO2 and water costs. While newspapers are printed locally, many books are produced across the country or overseas and then shipped to their final destinations. These shipping costs weigh heavily against print books. Print books do have an advantage over print newspapers, though, in that they are frequently reused, while a daily newspaper is not. A book can later be shared, given away, or sold to a used bookstore. Used books can continue to circulate through 9 Toffel, Michael W. and Arpad Horvath, “Environmental Implications of Wireless Technologies: New Delivery and Business Meetings”
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a community for decades, potentially bringing the total number of readers of any given print book far above the total number of readers for a given copy of the daily paper. Whether the same is done with e-book readers as early adopters upgrade their devices to the latest version is something that will depend on consumers and the durability of the e-book readers themselves—if nothing else, the print book potentially has life-span in its favor. All of this assumes, of course, that e-books are being read on a dedicated reading device such as the Sony Reader. Lexcycle, maker of the Stanza e-book reader application for the iPhone, points to another possibility. Stanza10 is an enormously popular application, one that had been downloaded over a million times as of the end of 2008,11 a number far beyond the estimated number of Kindles that had been sold at that point. Even gaming platforms are being used for reading. Nintendo recently announced an application called “100 Classic Books” for their handheld Nintendo ds system.12 As e-books find their way onto devices that people already have, their sustainability will increase. If the device is one that a consumer already owns, such as a mobile phone, then there is effectively no environmental impact from using it to read books as well as to make phone calls. With widespread adoption, e-books would seem to be a sustainable choice and will only become more so as programs to read e-books are better integrated into existing devices. But e-books should not be heralded as the solution to the book industry’s heavy reliance on paper. The emphasis now needs to be on manufacturing the devices we will use to read e-books in the most sustainable possible way— be they mobile phones, handheld game systems, or dedicated devices—and on finding the best avenues for e-book use, whether in publishers’ offices or in the hands of beach-going readers.
10 Stanza has since been sold to Amazon 11 Lexcycle, “One Million iPhone and iPod Touch Users Have Downloaded Stanza” 12 Holland, James, “Nintendo’s ds e-reader priced and dated”
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Producing This Book: A Creation Story There is no recipe for a “sustainable” book. After taking into consideration the many varieties of recycled and alternative-fiber papers, paper manufacturing processes, third-party certifications, binding choices, inks and toners, press types, transportation options and shipping distances, plus the realities of cost and availability of each option, we became a bit overwhelmed and, frankly, confused. Were we willing to pay extra to print the book in Portland instead of the Midwest, where most of the country’s book manufacturing takes place? Is recycled content the most important thing to consider when choosing paper stock? Does the speed and efficiency of digital printing prevail over the argument for vegetable-based inks? One of our very first tasks in this project was puzzling through these questions to help us make meaningful, well-reasoned choices about the production of this book. We set out to create an attractive, high-quality, and affordable product (unit cost was just over three dollars); we also tried to use local services and resources as much as possible and to publish a book that demonstrates its own message: sustainable book design and production is possible, affordable, and attractive. As you’ve read, making environmentally and socially responsible production decisions is about more than choosing recycled paper from a certified manufacturer. We did our best to learn as much as we could about the companies, products, and procedures used to make this book. It wasn’t enough to say that this ink is made from soybean oil; we wanted to find ink made from us-grown soybeans and not Amazon-grown soybeans (we did). Only by making a real investigative effort could we be satisfied that we were choosing the best of what was available to us and not succumbing to the siren song of often well-intentioned greenwashing. We were grateful for the opportunity afforded us by the Miller Grant to print and bind this book in our own city. Not only were we able to feel good about supporting local businesses, but also, as students, it was extremely useful to be able to visit our printer. Having face-to-face conversations about paper choices and design strategies only reinforced the lessons we’ve learned in our publishing classes. We also wanted to have the book printed on an offset press, using vegetablebased inks manufactured in the United States. More paper is used in the calibration of an offset press than in readying a digital one, but all of that paper goes right into the recycling bin and, for us, it was an acceptable trade-off to avoid using toner.
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PRINTER | Pinball Publishing in Southeast Portland was a great fit for this project.
Established in 2001, Pinball has integrated sustainable practices into everything they do. They use only soy-based inks manufactured locally from soybeans grown in the United States; buy renewable energy through Portland General Electric’s Green Source program; advocate for 100% recycled, and fsc-certified papers; and use low-voc, alcohol-free, and biodegradable washes and developers for cleaning their printing press and making plates. Even their ink waste isn’t really wasted—it’s collected by Metro and used in cement making. At Pinball, these deviations from traditional printing methods are a natural outgrowth from their sincere concern for the health of the environment, their customers, and their employees. made from alternative fibers such as hemp and kenaf were our first choice for the cover and interior pages, followed by highpercentage post-consumer waste recycled papers. We did not consider paper that wasn’t certified by the fsc. After consulting with Holly Derderian of Spicers Paper, Rebecca Wetherby of Environmental Paper and Print, and Jess Hirsch, Project Coordinator at Pinball Publishing, we learned that most alternative fiber papers are too weak to run through an offset press; they are also difficult to acquire and can be prohibitively expensive. Fortunately, quite a few affordable, high-quality, and high post-consumer waste content recycled book papers are available from all over the country from companies with responsible social and environmental policies. We narrowed our paper options down to three based on availability, price, and the manufacturer’s standards and certifications. The Neenah Paper Mill in Neenah, Wisconsin, has created a carbon neutral, closed-loop manufacturing system. Industrial Recyclers of Wisconsin collects and recycles all of the waste from the mill that cannot be made back into paper. Their sludge, a byproduct of the paper-making process composed of dirt, dye, and fibers, is collected, dried, and sent to Fox Valley Energy Center. Fox Valley, a clean incineration facility, burns the sludge to produce steam and a glass aggregate. The glass aggregate is used to make asphalt and roofing shingles. The steam is then sent back to the Neenah mill to power its entire operation.13 PAPER MANUFACTURER | Papers
13 Sherin, Aaris, SustainAble, page 63
29 | Rethinking Paper and Ink: The Sustainable Publishing Revolution A Short Comparison of Paper Manufacturers Paper
100% PCW
PCF
Certifications
Manufacturing
Neenah Environment
X
X
FSC Green Seal Green-e
carbon neutral using papermaking waste (WI)
Mohawk Options
X
X
FSC Green Seal Green-e
wind-generated electricity (NY)
Grays Harbor Quinault
X
X
FSC Green-e
carbon neutral using logging waste (WA)
Mohawk Paper, headquartered in Cohoes, New York, has been using windgenerated electricity to manufacture their papers since 2003. Mohawk also participates in voluntary state and federal environmental programs and is a member of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Climate Leaders Program. Grays Harbor paper is manufactured in Hoquiam, Washington, less than two hundred miles from Portland. A smaller company than Neenah or Mohawk, Grays Harbor is a locally owned family business that prides itself on being a “leader in regional sustainability.” Their paper is used by like-minded organizations including the environmental groups Metafore and Forest Ethics, the cities of Portland and Seattle, the State of California, Nike, rei, and others. Grays Harbor makes paper from post-consumer waste picked up from its commercial customers and de-inking facilities in Oregon and Washington. The virgin fiber it uses is sourced locally as well from Douglas fir trees. The mill is powered by steam generated from burning slash, a logging by-product. The process generates enough electricity to meet the company’s manufacturing needs and provides enough energy to power as many as 20,000 homes. David Quigg, Grays Harbor Marketing Director, explains that after scrubbing the smoke with water, very little pollution is released from the burning. Their manufacturing process is also considered carbon neutral since no trees are logged for fuel, new trees are planted to replace the trees they use, and the mill’s boilers absorb any carbon dioxide released from the plant.14 Since the papers we looked at were all similar in quality, third-party certifications, availability, and manufacturer’s renewable energy use, we chose Grays Harbor paper because it is a Pacific Northwest company. Using regionally made 14 Frishberg, Manny, “Environment: The Greening of Grays Harbor”
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paper means that not only are we supporting the local economy, but also that the paper didn’t have to travel a great distance to reach our printer. Grays Harbor paper is also less expensive than the other brands, which left room in our budget for more pages and better binding than we’d initially planned for. While our shortlist only contained three paper companies, it was not for a lack of options. New Leaf, Monadnock, Wausau, Domtar, Sappi, Appleton, and others offer high-quality, third-party-certified coated and uncoated papers. PAPER WEIGHT | Like
fishing line and t-shirts, paper comes in various weights. You need a heavier weight for ocean fishing, cool fall days, and glossy coffee table books. Lighter weights are better for catching rainbow trout, jogging in July, and the interior pages of paperback books. We chose an uncoated, moderate-weight, 70lb paper because we wanted a fairly opaque and durable sheet without using something heavier than what we really need. An 80lb sheet—stronger and more opaque—is 20% more paper than a 70lb sheet of the same size and would mean an increase in raw material, shipping cost, and CO2 emissions. Seventy-pound text weight paper is durable enough to hold up to frequent handling and opaque enough to limit ink show-through from one side of the page to the other. Both were a concern for us since we’ve done our best to fill each page with useful information that we hope you’ll refer to regularly. COVER STOCK | The cover of this book is made of chipboard, a recycled paper com-
posed of an amalgam of sources, including mixed papers and grocery bags. More commonly seen folded into cereal boxes, chipboard is gaining popularity among designers for its durability and its “recycled” look. Chipboard is heavier than standard paper covers, and we expect it to hold up well without any extra laminations or coatings. Films and coatings are standard-issue on both glossy and matte paperback covers, adding a layer of protection and visual appeal to the book. We wanted to avoid both coatings and lamination, since both add chemicals and plastics (not to mention more time and energy at the print shop or bindery) to the paper, making it less recyclable. SIZE | Perhaps you have noticed that this book has different dimensions than most
books. Although the two most common sizes for trade paperbacks are 6" × 9"and
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5.5" × 8.5", this one measures 5" × 7", not because we wanted to be different, but because these are the magic dimensions for the most efficient printing on the presses at Pinball. A smaller size would have created more waste paper; a larger one would have been more difficult to handle. Given the dimensions of the book and the size of Pinball’s offset press, we knew they would be using a 17" × 22" press sheet with 16 pages per sheet, eight on each side. A 64-page book, then, requires four 16-page signatures, each sheet passing through the press twice. Using whole signatures means less waste. These sorts of calculations are easy to do even when a publisher acquires a completed manuscript before starting the design and production planning. Making small adjustments to margins and fonts can make a big difference in fitting the text to a predetermined page count. BINDING | Our original concept for this book called for 12 fewer pages and a sad-
dle-stitched (stapled) binding. Not only is saddle-stitching usually less expensive than sewn or perfect bindings, it is also a more sustainable choice, as it creates a product that is easy to recycle. Staples and wire rings need only be separated from the paper in order to be recycled, an easy enough task for the consumer or the publisher. Saddle-stitching has limitations, however. A saddle-stitched book lacks a square spine and does not lay completely flat when closed, especially with a page count of 30 or more. Weighing the competing requirements of a professional-looking book with 64 pages and those of a highly recyclable, minimally polluting binding method, we opted for the less-sustainable perfect binding. Adhesives used in perfect binding may be made from synthetic polymers or, for the hobbyist bookmaker, rice or wheat starch. Rose City Bindery, which works with Pinball and bound this book, used a hot-melt glue. GRAPHIC DESIGN | Our focus for the interior and cover design was efficient use of
space and ink without sacrificing aesthetics. An obvious way to manage ink use is to avoid placing images at the edge of a page, therefore avoiding the ink and paper waste associated with bleeds—easy for us to do. The interior of the book is printed using just one color of ink, and the cover uses only two, thus limiting the amount of solvents required to clean the press during the job.
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We chose EcoFont for our headers and subtitles because it uses 20% less ink than comparable fonts, like Verdana (upon which EcoFont is based). Designed by the Dutch firm spranq to extend the life of toner cartridges, EcoFont characters contain tiny holes, unlike standard fonts, which are printed as solid lines. The designers recommend using EcoFont in smaller sizes, where the rendered characters look no different from regular, filled-in A’s and P’s. We think EcoFont looks pretty neat in larger sizes, too, showing off its ink-saving features. We used a traditional serif font for our text, however, since EcoFont is only available in a single, sans serif, regular face; italic and bold faces are not supported. Last, we wanted the interior design to make efficient use of space on each page without creating visual clutter. This meant careful placement of graphics and tables and, of course, editing our text to eliminate wordiness. A carefully composed text helps the reader get to the point and follow it. It can also pare down total page count and ink use. The scope of this project expanded as soon as we began planning it. What sounded so simple during brainstorming (a book! of course!) grew more complex with every new avenue our research revealed. More than an introduction to sustainable publishing, Rethinking Paper and Ink is the product of a five-month laboratory exercise, a condensed miniature version of the books Ooligan students turn out every year. Producing this book gave us a better understanding of the materials and processes available to us; we know the important questions to ask next time, and we’ve demonstrated to ourselves that sustainable publishing is well within our reach.
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Guide to Responsible Office Practices, Printing, and Paper Use Whether you are a publisher, student, instructor, or staff member, there are many simple things you can do to reduce your paper consumption, make more responsible printing choices, and encourage change in your offices, classes, and departments. Printing » Print only what you really need. » Print on both sides of every page and adjust your print settings to low toner or toner saver mode. » Preview documents before printing to make sure that you’re getting what you want the first time you print. » Make your syllabus available online through a free blog (wordpress.com is just one great option), Blackboard, or Google Docs. » Accept and return student work electronically. You can use Word’s Track Changes tool to make comments and corrections. Adobe Acrobat also has useful markup tools. » Ask a sales representative at your print shop to help you make the best choices when printing presentations, posters, and projects. Tell them that offering 100% recycled paper and recycling toner cartridges is important to you.
Paper » Write a formal paper policy. What’s In Your Paper? and Green Press Initiative both have excellent sample policies on their websites that can be modified to suit the priorities, needs, and constraints unique to your department. » Coordinate with other departments, or through the Business Affairs Office, to purchase paper in bulk. Buying as a psu group will mean better prices and fewer delivery trucks on the road. » Choose to purchase 100% pcw recycled papers for your home and office. The required minimum recycled content for state agencies is 30%, but the benefits of using 100% are impressive.
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» According to the Environmental Defense Fund’s Paper Calculator, replacing one ton of 30% pcw with one ton of 100% pcw saves the following resources: 2 tons of wood 2 million btus total energy 6 pounds of carbon dioxide equivalent and prevents the following unpleasant manufacturing byproducts: 3 pounds of nitrogen dioxide 4 pounds of particulates 3 pounds of volatile organic compounds (vocs) 6,125 gallons of wastewater 787 pounds of solid waste » Select uncoated paper rather than clay-coated paper whenever possible. » Use the lowest weight paper that suits the job. For every five-pound increase in basis weight, you’re using 10% more paper. » Purchase only fsc-certified, process chlorine-free (pcf) recycled paper. Other meaningful certifications are Green-e and Green Seal. » Grays Harbor, Mohawk, Boise, Wausau, Cascades, OfficeMax, and Xerox all offer 100% recycled copy papers. See also Conservatree’s Recycled Copy Paper Listings (conservatree.com/public/localsources/copypaper.html). » Arvey Paper, the PaperZone, OfficeMax, Office Depot, and Staples stock many of these brands at competitive prices. If you don’t see 100% recycled copy paper, ask for it. » Cultivate relationships with local paper suppliers to stay informed on the latest developments in paper technology. You can also stay updated by visiting the Green Press Initiative website. » Eliminate the junk mail you receive. Sign up online with Catalog Choice, dma Choice, and Tonic Mailstopper to change your subscription preferences with retailers, banks, and grocery stores.
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Ink » Recycle or refill ink and toner cartridges. You can drop your inkjet cartridges off for recycling at the Rapid Refill Ink station in the Portland State Bookstore or University Market. » Coordinate with other departments to purchase and recycle toner cartridges. » Become an advocate or an early adopter of soy-based toner for laser printers. See soyprint.net for more information. » When designing material for print, avoid colored inks made with heavy metals (these are usually metallic colors). Ask for mineral-free inks that are vegetable-, soy-, or water-based. » For petroleum-based inks, use only those that are less than 10% vocs. » Design for minimal ink coverage and avoid designs that bleed off the page. » Use recycled ink if possible.
Office Practices » In cold weather, set the thermostat to the lowest tolerable temperature and wear more clothes. » Print only when necessary, on both sides, and reuse paper as much as possible before it ends up in the recycling bin. » Do not use disposable food or drink containers or tools. » Use hot water only when necessary. » Compost food scraps. (It makes great fertilizer!) » Encourage alternative commuting such as public transport, walking, or biking. » Find out what kind of toner the printer uses and see if there are less toxic alternatives available. » Turn off all lights and computers when not in use.
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PSU Campus Sustainability Office and the Center for Sustainable Processes and Practices Portland State University's Campus Sustainability Office (cso) seeks to create an ecosystem that fosters innovative leadership in energy, water, land, and materials stewardship, building a healthy future for all. cso also produces the psu Green Guide (an information source on making a positive impact with your daily resourceuse decisions on campus) and runs programs that strengthen community engagement. cso is also responsible for planning, goal-setting, and data tracking related to psu’s resource stewardship performance. This includes regular Greenhouse gas emissions audits, climate action planning, and producing annual progress reports. The office has even become a part of the psu curriculum. Each quarter, it partners with a capstone class on a project related to campus resource stewardship (carbon, energy conservation, food). Information about these class projects is available on psu EcoWiki (a platform to learn about student groups and departmental green teams helping to make psu a better place to live, work, learn, and play). Campus Sustainability Office personnel work closely with the psu Center for Sustainable Processes and Practices (csp2) to transform our campus into a living laboratory, with efforts at research and education fully integrated into the community around us. From storm-water management to green buildings and waste prevention, our physical campus and practices are becoming learning tools for students and community members. csp2 focuses on strengthening psu’s academic and research contributions to the field of sustainability. The research is focused on four areas: the integration of human societies and the natural environment, creating sustainable urban communities, implementing sustainability and mechanisms of change, and measuring sustainability. psu tries to help students understand the principles of sustainability no matter what field of study they choose. Sustainability is taught not as a separate topic but integrated into most disciplinary majors and general education requirements. The Sustainability Advisory Council is a university-wide group made up of 12 faculty, staff, and students who guide the university’s efforts related to shifting the campus toward sustainable practices and academic leadership.
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Getting Involved at PSU: Academics, Green Teams, and Student Groups At psu there are many groups committed to living a more sustainable lifestyle. Although their approaches may be vastly different, the groups share the same longterm goal of creating a healthy future. The objective of the Sustainable Publishing Initiative is to address sustainability within the context of publishing, but we think it’s important to communicate with and encourage other endeavors on campus that share this long-term vision—because the very idea of sustainability begins with acknowledging the interrelatedness of everyone’s actions. There are many ways to learn about and promote sustainability at psu. You can get involved on campus by starting a research project, taking classes in sustainable studies, or either joining or starting a student group or a Green Team in your department. The following section describes some of these activities, which are detailed on psu’s EcoWiki website. urls have been provided throughout for easy reference if you’re interested in finding out more about any of these opportunities. Sustainable Studies Classes
psu provides education in sustainability studies year-round in a wide range of departments and subjects. Classes on sustainability-related topics include Architecture 431/531: Studies in Contemporary Urban Design; Economics 444/544: Economics of Green Power; and Political Science 319: Politics of the Environment. Other courses can be found in subject areas such as accounting, biology, geography, history, philosophy, and social work. Research Projects On the EcoWiki site you can find an invitation to join or start research projects that focus on sustainable topics. Current projects are listed in the following categories: “The Integration of Human Societies and the Natural Environment,” “Creating Sustainable Urban Communities,” “Implementing Sustainability and Mechanisms of Change,” and “Measuring Sustainability.” For a complete list of the projects underway as well as new projects being proposed, visit the EcoWiki research page at www.ecowiki.pdx.edu/research.html.
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Green Teams Green Teams are groups of faculty and staff members that promote the adoption of best practices within their departments. Green Teams can make a difference in a variety of ways, from improving recycling options to reducing paper and energy use, commuting by bicycle, and more. In each of these areas Green Team members track data, change standard operating procedures, and celebrate the success of their efforts. As of spring 2009, 22 departments have Green Teams. To find out more about Green Teams and how you can start one in your department, visit the EcoWiki Green Teams page at ecowiki.pdx.edu/green-teams.html. Green Student Groups Many student organizations on campus participate in activities that relate to sustainability issues. The Bike Advocacy Committee, the Bike Co-op, and the Cycling Team all work to promote bike transportation in a variety of ways. The Food for Thought CafĂŠ and Vegans for Animal Advocacy work for more sustainable food sources and related practices. Other groups focus on clean water, botany, climate change, and social issues. A list of student groups who are working hard to make a difference can be found at ecowiki.pdx.edu/student-groups.html.
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Miller Grant Recipients A 25 million dollar challenge grant was awarded to psu by the Miller Foundation in September 2008, intended to promote study and research in fields related to sustainability. In January 2009, students were asked to propose projects that would make progress in sustainability-related issues at psu. The projects were to be completed by the end of Spring Term 2009. The Sustainable Publishing Initiative group at Ooligan Press submitted a proposal for the creation of a book through the use of sustainable publishing practices, which became the book you now hold in your hands. This was our original project description: The Sustainability Book (Since titled "Rethinking Paper and Ink.") Student Leader: Melissa Brumer
Our department will sustainably publish a book. We will collaborate with other departments and local businesses to achieve our goal. The book will be used as a teaching tool for the book publishing and sustainability programs, and as potential marketing collateral for Ooligan Press and psu. We have a group of students who are interested in, engaged with, and committed to helping Ooligan Press become the country’s first sustainable student-run teaching press. The Sustainability Book is the first step towards reaching larger goals within the publishing program—such as incorporating sustainable publishing classes into our core curriculum, and becoming leaders in the field with research and education. psu is one of the only universities to offer a degree in book publishing and is a leader in sustainable studies. We believe this is the best time to merge our unique strengths and become leaders in sustainable publishing.
Fifteen projects were funded with the Miller Grant in 2009. Groups of PSU students came up with some excellent ideas, from a project to reduce bottled water consumption to a bicycle loan program and a sustainable fashion show. Here’s a list of the other Miller Grant recipients, with descriptions of their projects. More information about the Miller Grant can be found at the EcoWiki website. Building An Action Plan for Reaching Food System Sustainability at PSU Student Leader: Cameron Smith
This proposal provides an opportunity for innovative education around sustainable food systems, supports psu’s interest in becoming a living laboratory of sustainability, and contributes to targeted research areas defined by the university (www.pdx.edu/sustainability/sustainability-research-areas). The goal of
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the project is to develop a plan for integrating the Food for Thought Café into research and teaching at psu across departments and disciplines, and to develop a one-year and a five-year plan for improving sustainable practices in psu’s food system. This proposal supports foundational work that will help us identify how the café can be a site for teaching and research. This includes subjects related to education that foster positive engagement and change, as well as methods of measuring and achieving sustainable practices. Look Up and See Green: The Greening of an Urban Terrace Student Leader: Patricia Graf
Look Up and See Green is a student-driven, collaborative initiative to lead the Portland Metropolitan Region in sustainability. Our first project focuses on implementing innovative strategies to make a sustainable community gathering place on the fourth floor terrace of the Urban Center Building. This project brings together student groups such as the Community Development Student Group, Food for Thought Café, and the Environmental Club to work on implementing ideas such as ongoing research of rainwater collection strategies, utilizing our rooftops for growing food, and creating a vibrant meeting place for the psu and Portland community. The Urban Center is a major hub for Portland; with the convergence of the streetcar, the new light-rail line, and the expansion of the bus lines, the terrace is ideally located to serve as an education and demonstration site for campus sustainability initiatives that can inform initiatives throughout the region. Passion for Fashion: Sustainable Design Fashion Show Student Leader: William Mikesell
We will bring together the student body around sustainability by showcasing emerging eco-friendly apparel in a fashion show and giving students in departments across campus the opportunity to gain real world experience throwing a community event. psu:ama is hosting “Passion for Fashion: Sustainable Design Fashion Show” on May 26 in the Smith Memorial Student Union Ballroom. In coordination with the Art Institute, the event will feature designs of dresses in four acts: Organic, Rejectamenta, Eco-Friendly/Sustainable, and Animal Friendly. The event will benefit a non-profit that provides clothing to underprivileged people, filling a need in the community for quality clothing and will raffle environmentally friendly products donated by our sponsors. The event will rally students who would otherwise be less interested in doing sustainability work to come and see how their personal purchasing choices make a difference in the lives of people around the world and environments in which they live.
41 | Rethinking Paper and Ink: The Sustainable Publishing Revolution PSU Take Back The Tap Student Leader: Rebecca Aaby
The Environmental Club is committed to reducing the ecological footprint of Portland State University by shifting students’ greater social consciousness toward water sustainability. To reduce the consumption of bottled water on the psu campus we will purchase reusable water bottles to sell at a deeply discounted rate to students. With the revenue generated by bottle sales, two filtered water refill stations will be installed at key locations on campus, acting as centers for community education of water issues. To focus attention in a dynamic way we will host a water awareness week in April. Throughout the week we will sell discounted water bottles, show the movie Flow at 5th Ave Cinema, conduct a blind taste test (tap water vs. bottled water), display a student art installation, and host a guest speaker. This project will energize a commitment to sustainability through an engaging, educational campaign offering considerable long-term results in proportion to the input required. Sustainable Residential Water Consumption in Suburban Portland: Recommendations for the Future of Suburban Development Student Leader: Lily House-Peters
In the Portland, Oregon, area, suburban growth in cities such as Hillsboro is projected to increase as people continue to seek affordable housing near a burgeoning metropolitan area. The most significant determinants for increases in water demand are population growth, climate change, and the type of urban development that occurs. This project will analyze water consumption patterns for the City of Hillsboro to determine the most significant determinants of residential water consumption. The project will focus on three main aspects of demandside sustainable water consumption management. (1) The City of Hillsboro 50-year water demand projection will be analyzed for accuracy based on the type of urban growth outlined in the city’s future growth projection and the analysis of water consumption patterns based on an urban form density index. (2) The effectiveness of City of Hillsboro funded conservation programs and changes to the water rate billing structure will be analyzed to determine which programs most effectively decrease residential water use, especially during peak consumption months. Recommendations will also be made regarding neighborhoods that should be targeted for sustainable conservation programs due to high water use. (3) The impact of projected climate change in the Pacific Northwest on residential water consumption and demand will be evaluated by analyzing seasonal and inter-annual variations in water use.
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Adapting Ceramic Water Filters for the Treatment of Arsenic Contamination Student Leader: Jacob Scherberg
Arsenic contamination in drinking water is a major health problem in developing countries. The efficiency of advanced treatment technologies (e.g., using ferric oxide to sequester dissolved arsenic) has been shown to be significantly affected by the competitive sequestration of dissolved phosphate. Specific goals of the research are: (1) to test the effectiveness of ceramic filters to remove dissolved arsenic; (2) to test the effectiveness of a modified ceramic filter system to include ferric oxide; and (3) to test the competitive sequestration between dissolved total arsenic and total phosphate. The results of these experiments will provide those organizations engaged in the treatment of arsenic-contaminated waters with information about the competitive relationship between arsenic and phosphate for ferric oxide. This has the potential to create a simple and inexpensive system, capable of treating contaminated drinking water with a potentially significant impact, i.e., supplying the world’s poorest communities with affordable, fresh drinking water supplies. International Student Internship with Student Leaders for Service Student Leader: Sarah Simpson
By supporting students through year-long internships with 25 of psu’s partner nonprofit organizations, Student Leaders for Service (sls) holds a sense of responsibility for a positive social environment to future generations at its core. In an effort to broaden the scope of our program’s socially sustainable practices and to enhance psu’s sustainability-related curriculum available to international students, sls proposes supporting a group of international students through service-learning opportunities at our partner organizations. Each international student will be paired with an sls mentor. They will travel from psu to their service site together. Each pair will work to connect psu resources to their partner organization in an effort to build their site’s capacity to better serve the community. The international students will join sls students for a weekly class to discuss service from a cultural perspective and better understand our responsibility to future generations worldwide. Research Experience for Undergraduate Students Student Leader: Gwen Davis
reu is a National Science Foundation (nsf) program that encourages undergraduates—with an emphasis on women and minorities recruited nationwide— to engage in graduate level research. This program, established in 2001 by Prof. Jiao, has successfully trained over 100 students—many of whom have gone on to graduate school or pursued careers in science or engineering. We propose establishing an reu-like program with nsf match potential at psu. We aim to
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immediately recruit and involve five undergraduate students to work in research groups across campus, participating in ground-breaking solar cell research that aims to revolutionize sustainable energy techniques via nanotechnology. These students will be trained on high-tech electron microscopy equipment, have opportunities to present at conferences, and publish results. Dr. Jiao’s research efforts have garnered national and international attention as well as secured significant funding. This opportunity will greatly enhance the students’ experience and empower them to be active in their field. Searching For Our Community: A Methodological Assessment of a Soft System Dynamics Method (SSDM) as a Social Learning Tool in Water Resource Management Student Leader: Stephan Brown
This dissertation research project will contribute to a participatory action research methodology of institutional analysis and design in collaborative natural resource management. It proposes a social sustainability inquiry process, the ssdm, and evaluates its efficacy as a learning tool to assist stakeholder groups in exploring the challenges and opportunities for building effective inter-organizational partnerships. Specifically, the project will consist of three case studies of stakeholder groups in Oregon who are working on water resource management. This grant would support carrying out two of the three case studies by Spring, 2009. The ssdm process centers on two workshops in which the stakeholder group explores the institutional constraints on, and opportunities for, effective collaboration. The project’s action research design carries an educational component for the participants. In addition, at least one of the proposed case studies, the Marmot Dam decommissioning, could be incorporated into a psu course on ecosystem services. PSU Sustainability and Health Awareness Survey Student Leader: Kurt Beil
Processes and practices of sustainability are enacted in part because of the positive impact they have on human health. Yet it is unknown to what degree the psu community associates sustainable processes and practices directly with public health impacts. This project will develop a survey of the psu community’s awareness and understanding of the link between sustainability and public health. Students, faculty, administration and staff will be sent an electronic survey designed to measure participants’ knowledge, awareness, attitudes and behaviors related to (1) sustainable processes and practices, and (2) their public health implications. The survey will be based on a literature review and collaboration between psu’s Center for Sustainable Processes and Practices, Office of Sustainability, Office of Institutional Research and Planning, and School of Community Health. Survey results will be used to inform subsequent future efforts for promoting sustainable health awareness in the psu community, as well as shaping the direction of further research agendas.
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Making Informed Green Choices to Reduce Plant Emissions: A Study of Isoprene Emission in Bamboo Student Leader: Andrea Melnychenko
This project aims to better address urban greening and its impact on air quality through a study of isoprene emission in bamboo. The movement towards urban greening has grown in popularity in cities like Portland, with bamboos playing an ever-increasing number of roles in landscape, horticulture, and urban screening. However, bamboo is a source of isoprene, a biogenic volatile organic compound (voc), which leads to the accumulation of tropospheric ozone. Plant emissions of carbon into the atmosphere as biogenic vocs are a commonly overlooked aspect of air quality in urban settings. Initial survey work that I began in Spring 2008 at psu has shown a wide range of isoprene emission in throughout ornamental bamboos. The goal of this project is to complete my survey of emission rates and compile a recommended list of low emitting bamboos that can be distributed to urban planners and horticulturalists. VIKEBIKES: PSU Bicycle Loan Program Student Leader: Ellene Smith
The VIKEBIKES Loaner Bikers Program is intended to make bicycle travel—the ultimate form of sustainable urban transportation—accessible and affordable for all psu students and to integrate bicycle transportation into the values and lifestyle of college students. With donated and refurbished bikes we will create a fleet of green VikeBikes which students will be able to borrow on a long-term basis and use for their transportation needs, including commuting and running errands. VikeBikes will come equipped with transportation essentials: a helmet, lights, u-lock, rack, and fenders. This program also has rider education as a main goal, with learning outcomes such as how to ride safely and how to fix and maintain a bicycle. As an additional benefit, the process of creating this program will be documented in detail and packaged in a way that is accessible to students or staff at other institutions wishing to implement a similar system. Worms + Food Scraps = Amazing Compost Student Leader: Yvonne Norman
This will be a workshop for 18 students and 2 faculty members at Portland State University. Participants will learn the basics of vermicomposting (composting food scraps with worms), and the benefits to the environment that come about with vermicomposting. I have presented this workshop numerous times before, so will use my same format. I present a power point and then guide the participants in setting up their own vermicompost bins. Questions and discussion are welcome throughout the workshop. I already have two instructors who would welcome integrating this workshop into their curriculum. Michelle AldamaShaw is teaching Global Political Ecology this term, and Professor Mckeown is
45 | Rethinking Paper and Ink: The Sustainable Publishing Revolution
teaching the advanced level of the same class. Each participant will be expected to share the knowledge that they gained with two other people who do not know about vermicomposting. John and Maria Naramore from bwcn farms will also be present to assist. PSU Learning Garden Project Student Leader: Stephanie (PJ) Houser
The Environmental Club is investigating the feasibility of creating a garden cooperative to oversee current and future gardening projects on campus. Funding is requested to hire a student researcher to investigate successful learning garden models in the region, prepare an in-depth plan and curriculum, propose a garden co-op structure, and identify potential funding sources. This co-op will be a central hub for all students and faculty interested in gardening on campus by providing resources, tools, and information. It will also oversee organization and scheduling of the gardens, ensuring strong linkages among faculty, student groups, and the Facility and Planning Grounds Department.
There are many ways for psu students to engage and work together for adopting best practices on campus, in the Portland community, and even worldwide. No matter what your interests or field of study, there’s a group to join or a project to start, and students today are setting the pace for the students of tomorrow. Thanks to the Miller Foundation for making our project possible. Thanks also to Heather Spalding at the EcoWiki website for allowing us to reproduce the helpful information they’ve provided on sustainable resources at psu. And thanks to you, for reading this book we’ve put together, and being a part of our sustainability project.
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Selected Resources For many more excellent resources, visit the Green Press Initiative's website. Small, Local Paper Distributors Arvey Paper and Office Products 1005 se Grand Avenue Portland, or 97214 503-231-5600 www.xpedexstores.com
Paper Zone 1136 se Grand Avenue Portland, or 97214 503-233-2933 www.paperzone.com
Ink Cartridge Recycling Rapid Refill Ink 1405 sw 11th Avenue Portland, or 97201 503-226-3465 www.rapidrefill.com
Ink Manufacturers and Suppliers Great Western Ink (not open to the public) 503-226-3595 www.gw-inks.com
SoyPrint 888-640-0062 ext. 101 rickg@soyprint.net www.soyprint.net
Braden Sutphin Ink Company www.bsink.com
Local Printers Clean Copy 1704 sw Broadway Portland, or 97201 503-221-1876 clean-copy.com
Dynagraphics 300 nw 14th Avenue Portland, or 97209 503-338-9453 www.dynagraphics.com
Environmental Paper and Print 11035 ne Skidmore Portland, or 97220 503-257-9771 info@environmentalprint.com www.environmentalprint.com
Pinball Publishing 1003 se Grant Portland, or 97214 503-238-4514 info@pinballpublishing.com www.pinballpublishing.com
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Other Printers and Book Manufacturers Hemlock Printers Suite 201 - 2800 S 192nd Street Seattle, wa 98188 206-241-8311 www.hemlock.com
Thomson-Shore 7300 W Joy Road Dexter, mi 48130 734-426-3939 www.thomsonshore.com
Maple-Vail Book Manufacturing Group po Box 2695 York, pa 17405 717-764-5911 www.maple-vail.com
Paper Manufacturers and Distributors Grays Harbor Hoquiam, wa www.ghplp.com
Living Tree Paper Eugene, or www.livingtreepaper.com
Neenah Paper Neenah, wi www.neenahpaper.com
New Leaf Paper 888-989-5323 www.newleafpaper.com
Mohawk Fine Papers Cohoes, ny www.mohawkpaper.com
Spicers Paper Gresham, or www.spicerspaper.com
Chelsea Green’s Green Partner Bookstores Portland State University Bookstore 1715 sw 5th Avenue Portland, or 97201 503-226-2631 www.portlandstatebookstore.com
Powell’s Books 1005 w Burnside Street Portland, or 97209 503-228-4651 www.powells.com
St. Johns Books 8622 n Lombard Street Portland, or 97203 503-283-0032 www.stjohnsbooks.com
Tea Party Bookshop 420 Ferry Street se Salem, or 97301 503-990-6471 www.teapartybookshop.com
Tsunami Books 2585 Willamette Street Eugene, or 97405 541-345-8986
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Web Resource Guide The following websites were helpful in writing Rethinking Paper and Ink: The Sustainable Publishing Revolution and are useful sources of information if you’re interested in finding out more about the topics in this book. Certification Programs Forest Stewardship Council www.fscus.org
Green-e www.green-e.org
Green Seal www.greenseal.org
Paper Chlorine Free Products Association: labeling marks and standards www.chlorinefreeproducts.org/marks.htm
Conservatree: Expert Advice and Leadership on Paper Choices www.conservatree.com A comprehensive overview of the papermaking process www.conservatree.org/learn/LearnMore.shtml A guide to common types of copy paper www.conservatree.com/public/localsources/copypaper.html How to read a ream wrapper www.conservatree.com/public/pubimages/readawrapper.gif
Environmental Defense Fund Paper Calculator www.edf.org/papercalculator
Environmental Paper Network www.environmentalpaper.org
epa on paper and paper products www.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/tools/cpg/products/paper.htm
Green Press Initiative www.greenpressinitiative.org
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Metafore, see the life cycle of paper fiber www.metafore.org
Melcher Media, see Durabook section www.melchermedia.com
Natural Resources Defense Council www.nrdc.org A useful glossary for types of paper bleaching www.nrdc.org/cities/living/chlorine.asp
What’s in Your Paper www.whatsinyourpaper.com
Sustainable Design
aiga Center for Sustainable Design www.sustainability.aiga.org
Celery Design Collaborative www.celerydesign.com Sustainability Scorecard www.celerydesign.com/eco-tools/ Ecological Guide to Paper www.celerydesign.com/ecological-guide-to paper/uncoated/
Toby Hemenway, Ecological Design and Permaculture www.patternliteracy.com
O2 Global Network www.o2.org
Re-nourish: a site about sustainable practices in graphic design www.re-nourish.com
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Sustainability Issues The Book Industry Environmental Council (biec) www.bookcouncil.net
Earth Policy Institute www.earthpolicy.org
Eco-libris, plant a tree for every book you read www.ecolibris.net
Markets Initiative www.marketsinitiative.org
Rainforest Alliance www.rainforest-alliance.org/forestry.cfm?id=main
Sustainablog www.sustainablog.org
Treehugger www.treehugger.com
Portland State EcoWiki www.ecowiki.pdx.edu
Office of Sustainability www.pdx.edu/sustainability
Ooligan Press www.ooliganpress.pdx.edu
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Suggested Reading Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things, William McDonough and Michael Branugart North Point Press, 2002 isbn: 978-0865475878 www.mcdonough.com/cradle_to_cradle.htm
Gaia’s Garden: A Guide To Home-Scale Permaculture, 2nd edition, Toby Hemenway Chelsea Green Press, 2009 isbn: 978-1603580298 www.chelseagreen.com/bookstore/item/gaias_garden_second_edition:paperback
Green Graphic Design, Brian Dougherty and the Celery Design Collaborative Allworth Press, 2008 isbn: 978-158115511-2 www.allworth.com/Green_Graphic_Design_p/1-58115-511-5.htm
Plan B 3.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization, Lester Brown W. W. Norton & Company, 2008 isbn: 978-0393330878 Available free as an extended e-book at www.earthpolicy.org.
SustainAble: A Handbook of Materials and Applications for Graphic Designers and Their Clients, Aaris Sherin Rockport Publishers, Inc., 2008 isbn: 978-1-59253-401-2 www.rockpub.com
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Works Cited Benson, Eric. Re-Nourish: Nutrients for the Graphic Design Community www.re-nourish.com bnet. “Bowker Reports U.S. Book Production Flat in 2007” May 2008 www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_pwwi/is_200805/ai_n25460387 Frishberg, Manny. “Environment: The Greening of Grays Harbor,” Seattle Business Monthly, August 2008. Accessed via www.seattlebusinessmonthly.com. Green Press Initiative. “About Us: Book Sector.” www.greenpressinitiative.org/about/bookSector.htm Green Press Initiative. “Reducing Climate Impacts: A Guide for the Book and Newspaper Industries.” www.greenpressinitiative.org/documents/climateguide.pdf Green Press Initiative. “Environmental Paper Network: Social Impacts of the Paper Industry,” July 2007. www.greenpressinitiative.org/documents/ socialimpactsfactsheet.pdf Holland, James. “Nintendo’s DS e-reader priced and dated.” Electricpig. December 2008. www.electricpig.co.uk/2008/12/01/nintendo%E2%80%99s-ds-e-reader-pricedand-dated/ Lexcycle. “One Million iPhone and iPod Touch Users Have Downloaded Stanza,” December 2008. www.lexcycle.com/press/one_million_users Sherin, Aaris. SustainAble: A Handbook of Materials and Applications for Graphic Designers and Their Clients, Rockport Publishers, Inc., 2008 Toffel, Michael W. and Arpad Horvath. “Environmental Implications of Wireless Technologies: News Delivery and Business Meetings,” Environmental Science & Technology Vol. 38, No. 11, 2964 Wyatt, Edward. “Electronic Device Stirs Unease at Book Fair,” New York Times online edition, 2 June 2008. www.nytimes.com/2008/06/02/books/02bea.html?_r=1
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Glossary and Other Useful Terms ALTERNATIVE FIBERS | Non-wood mate-
rials for making papers including hemp, kenaf, bamboo, banana leaves, or agricultural residues such as grass clippings. BIOLOGICALLY MAGNIFIED | The
increasing accumulation of a compound, such as mercury or arsenic, as it moves up the food chain.
from “cradle to grave,� (that is, for a single use) designing it with recycling or reuse in mind, so that the quality of the material can withstand a large or indefinite number of recycling processes. The sustainability of an object or process starts with the design. DIGITAL PRINTING | As distinct from off-
BLEED | A printing term for ink that
set printing, digital presses print directly from a digital file, a process usually used for smaller print jobs or print-on-demand.
extends beyond the margins to the edge of the page.
DIOXIN | A general name for a large group
CARBON NEUTRAL | Having a net-zero
carbon footprint. This is often achieved both by making adjustments to a manufacturing or shipping process, and by purchasing carbon offsets. CARBON OFFSETS | A system by which
an individual or an organization can compensate for their own carbon emissions by investing in energy alternatives, including wind power, or hydroelectric energy, or other Greenhouse gas reduction strategies.
of toxic and highly carcinogenic chemical compounds with similar structure. These compounds are made up of carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, and chlorine atoms. DOWN-CYCLING | The quality lost in
material during the recycling process; after each time paper is recycled, the fibers gradually become more and more broken down. Paper fibers can usually only be recycled seven times before they can no longer be used. ELEMENTAL CHLORINE-FREE
CLOSED LOOP |Term referring to a
(ECF ) | Since the use of elemental chlorine
process that sustains itself.
in the paper-bleaching process was discontinued in the United States following an epa ruling in 2001, many companies now use an ecf process involving chlorine
CRADLE-TO-CRADLE | An approach
in design. Rather than designing an object
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dioxide, a compound said to produce less harmful waste than that produced by using pure chlorine. However, the toxic compounds and dioxins in the waste are not eliminated entirely. ecf paper, while produced to better standards than paper produced using elemental chlorine, is still less desirable from an environmental standpoint than paper processed chlorine-free (pcf) or totally chlorine-free (tcf).
GAIA THEORY | A theory, attributed to
James Lovelock, which states that all living things on earth are interconnected so as to create one large organic whole as a thin shell surrounding the earth. GREENWASHING | A term used to
describe the act of misleading consumers regarding the environmental practices of a company or the environmental benefits of a product or service.
EFFLUENT | A general term for liquid
industrial waste discharge. FOREST STEWARDSHIP COUNCIL
(FSC) | A worldwide organization that certifies sustainable forestry practices. In order to earn fsc certification, a forest must be managed in a way that respects the forest’s natural ecosystem and habitats, as well as the rights and interests of indigenous peoples. For a mill or paper merchant to receive certification, they must use or sell only wood or paper products from forests that are fsc-certified. While there are other certification organizations, fsc is widely regarded as the most credible, since it is the most extensively and independently monitored.
GOOGLE DOCS | A free service from
Google that allows you to upload and save documents from your desktop, edit them online from any computer, and invite others to read or edit your documents. Files are stored in Google’s secure servers. Search for “Google Documents.” INTERDEPENDENCE | The dynamic rela-
tionships between all living things and the systems in which those things exist; these relationships are of mutual dependence for the success or survival of each individual constituent and of the whole unit. MAKE READY | Paper consumed during
the calibration of an offset printing press. It often represents up to 10% of paper used in a print run.
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OFFSET PRINTING | A printing process
PRE-CONSUMER FIBER | Fiber, recov-
in which images are offset onto another surface before being printed on a paper surface. Many larger printing projects are done by offset printing.
ered from mills and production processes, that was never incorporated into a product that reached a consumer.
PERFECT BINDING | A common binding
staples through the center; most pamphlets and magazines are bound this way.
method for paperback books. Pages, within a heavier paper cover, are bound by an adhesive at the book’s spine. PROCESSED CHLORINE-FREE
(PCF ) | pcf paper must contain at least 30% post-consumer waste, for which no chlorine was used in the recycling process. It may also contain virgin paper, but that content must be produced totally chlorine-free (tcf). pcf paper may contain chlorine in the post-consumer fiber; however, that chlorine comes from the bleaching process that was originally used in the recovered paper, but not from the subsequent recycling process. Generally, pcf is considered the best grade of recycled paper, since it avoids using chlorine or chlorine compounds in its production process and contains postconsumer content. POST-CONSUMER WASTE
(PCW) | Paper recovered from consumers and recycled into new paper.
SADDLE-STITCHING | Binding with
SUSTAINABLE FORESTRY INITIATIVE
(SFI) | An organization that certifies sustainable forestry practices. It was created by the American Forest & Paper Association, which has strong ties to the timber industry. The sfi does not currently have the same established credibility as the fsc. SIGNATURE | A section of book pages
gathered together after folding and cutting; multiple sections are then gathered together and bound. SOY-BASED INK | An environmen-
tally conscious alternative to traditional petroleum-based ink, manufactured from soybean oil. Soy-based inks need only contain 20% soybean oil to be so labeled. SPECIFIC GRAVITY | The ratio of the
density of a given solid or liquid substance to the density of water at the same temperature. Pure water at four degrees Celsius (at maximum density) is the base line for specific gravity and is given a value of one.
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TOTALLY CHLORINE-FREE
VOLATILE ORGANIC COMPOUND
(TCF ) | This grade refers to virgin paper
(VOC) | vocs, commonly found in
that uses no chlorine or chlorine compounds in the bleaching process. tcf is only applicable to virgin fiber paper, and pcf is applicable to recycled paper.
petroleum-based inks, are carbon-based substances that instantly vaporize at normal temperatures. They have negative effects on both the environment (they react with the nitrous oxide in the air and form ozone) and human health (they contain known carcinogens).
TONER | A carbon-polymer powder used
in place of ink in laser printers and copiers; it is fused to the paper with heat. TREE-FREE | refers to paper made from
alternative fibers, often grown agriculturally, such as hemp, cotton, or kenaf (see also: wood-free). TRIPLE BOTTOM LINE | A method of
measuring overall performance based on the economic, environmental, and social performances of a business, rather than the traditional single-bottom-line approach, which only considers economical. VEGETABLE-BASED INK | Ink produced
with a vegetable-oil base. Like ink produced with soybean oil, this is another environmentally conscious alternative to petroleum-based inks. VIRGIN FIBER | Material used to make
paper that comes directly from the tree; it contains no recycled material.
WATERLESS PRINTING | An offset litho-
graphic printing process that eliminates the water or dampening system used in conventional printing (see www.waterless. org/NwhatIs/whatIs.htm). This method claims to have less hazardous environmental impact than conventional printing. WOOD-FREE PAPER | Term that can
refer to paper made from alternative fibers, often grown agriculturally, such as hemp, cotton, or kenaf (see also tree-free); but wood-free is also a common term used by overseas printers to describe a paper that contains little or no mechanically ground fibers and does not denote a paper or pulp made from materials other than wood.
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Ooligan Credits MILLER GRANT PROPOSAL | Melissa Brumer & Janine Eckhart PRIMARY AUTHORS | Melissa Brumer & Janine Eckhart CONTRIBUTING AUTHORS | Eric Benson, Abbey Gaterud, Tom McCluskey,
Dehlia McCobb & Noelle-Studer-Spevak MANAGING EDITORS | Katie Shaw & Mel Wells COPYEDITORS | Sandra Arg端ello, Katie Lucas & Leah Sims CONSOLIDATING EDITOR | Julie Franks PROOFREADERS | Melissa Brumer, Abbey Gaterud, Chelsea Harlan,
Katie Shaw, Dennis Stovall, Ian VanWyhe & Mel Wells COVER
& OPENBOOK LOGO DESIGNER | Kelley Dodd
INTERIOR DESIGNER | Janine Eckhart MARKETING | Maggie Jones & Carole Studebaker