Printer Leadership Ideas

Actions award-winning printers are taking to decrease their impact on forest ecosystems include:

Forest, Carbon and Biodiversity Conservation

- Sourcing papers with virgin fiber from Forest Stewardship Council certified tenures. (FSC - Certification provides market support directly to the forest for the most sustainable on-the-ground logging. FSC certification and, more importantly, the use of FSC-certified papers, supports paper manufacturers’ obtaining FSC certification in the forest.)

- Conducting chain-of-custody audits with suppliers to identify fiber supply coming from high-carbon, high-biodiversity, and high-conservation-value forests. Doing this also helps screen for illegally logged fiber and is part of the due diligence required by the Lacey Act.

- Working with Canopy and mills to source low-carbon and low-biodiversity paper options – alternatives to virgin fiber from high-carbon, high-conservation-value and high-biodiversity sources.

- Cancelling contracts with controversial paper companies that contribute to deforestation and species decline (who may also engage in illegal logging).

Related to Paper Procurement

- Set and meet annual targets to increase use of post-consumer-recycled content paper

- Annual increase in use of FSC certified paper

- Annual decrease in use of paper from endangered forests

- Annual increase in use of paper made with agricultural residue, if available

- Offering lines of Ancient Forest Friendly(TM) paper (Webcom)

- Providing press time to trial agricultural residue paper

Improving Paper Efficiencies

- 50%+ reduction in paper waste due to faster press make-readies and reduced running waste on new web press. (Mitchell Press 2009)

Around the Office

- Use Ancient Forest Friendly paper for its own business purposes: photocopying and all business communication, from letterhead to invoices. (Dollco)

Sales and Marketing

- Leading green printers report with transparency on what they are doing, with detailed information on their websites and in annual sustainability reports. (EarthColor and Transcontinental are two of the best examples.)

- These printers also have sales reps that are highly committed to reducing the footprint of printed jobs and work with clients to reduce the impact of paper use in order to save the client money as well as achieve environmental savings. This includes providing seminars to print buyers and graphic designers about eco-papers and guidelines on how to specify greener print jobs.

Printers such as EarthColor, Transcontinental, Hemlock and others have also taken leadership on:

- Carbon accounting

- Using truly renewable energy like wind power

- Improving the energy efficiency of their presses and buildings

- Reducing their transportation footprint by switching to rail over truck

- Being active in their community with donations

Click here for Printer Leadership Profiles on Forest Conservation

Click Here for a list of Printers with Ancient Forest Friendly Paper Procurement Policies

Learn about the Canopy and SGP Alliance

Photo: USFWS (United States Fish and Wildlife Service)