A Balanced View of the Environmental Aspects of Catalogues

Catalogues play a vital and critically important part in effective recycling and environmental sustainability.

Recycling

Catalogues and other forms of paper are 100% recyclable and up to 70% of all catalogue paper is currently recycled through kerbside collection. 

A little known fact is that without catalogues, newspapers and cardboard could not be recycled effectively without further virgin fibre added to the pulp mix. Catalogues have higher quality fibres than newspapers and cardboard and are vital in producing quality recycled newsprint and carboard. Newspaper and cardboard waste contains low strength fibres and need the light weight long fibres and natural clay-based lubricant of the higher grade catalogue grade paper in order to produce quality newsprint and packaging.

A further relatively unknown fact is that the sale of recovered paper for recycling purposes is the main source of income for waste disposal companies which funds the recycling of other forms of waste.

Carbon Footprint

Another view to be considered is the perception that on-line media is more environmentally friendly then receiving a hard copy in the form of a catalogue or newspaper. Greater information is now being made available to the public of the environmental aspects of paper media such as catalogues (hard copy) versus digital media such as the internet (soft copy).

The first step of the review examined the energy consumption of the two types of media product and the greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) footprint with surprising results. Reading a catalogue or newspaper can equate to the same energy consumed by reading online.

The second step was a review of the GHG footprint of the full life cycle of paper including disposal and recycling. The recycling capabilities of paper are far greater than the recycling capabilities of the components of computer equipment. Recycled paper can be used to make other products including newspapers and cardboard and can save valuable energy and minimise waste. Paper can be recycled for re-use at least 3-5 times. In addition when paper eventually ends up in landfill sites, paper has low toxicity and continues to lock up carbon for an extended period, with some studies suggesting that this is up to 30 years and longer. Furthermore, recycled paper can be locked away for longer periods if used for the building industry such as insulation panels in walls.

Catalogue Production

Advances in sustainability and technology combine to benefit the catalogue industry in the production and printing of catalogue papers which include:

• forestry practises have become more efficient through certification of 'chain of custody' materials handling practices such as the Programme for Endorsement of Forestry Certification (PEFC) and Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). These certification bodies are driving stronger sustainable growth in forests which are used for commercial purposes (Australian forest plantations grew by 51% the past ten years),
• paper production has achieved a 21% reduction in GHG emissions and 63% reduction in water use since 1990;
• the use of CTP and auto blanket washing in printing has reduced solvent and water use by almost 60% since 1990, and
• current printing press technology has reduced GHG emissiions by 97% since 1990

All pulp and paper plants and most printing plants in Australia have obtained ISO14001 environmental accreditation which ensure continuous improvement through setting targets which achieve:

• reduced energy consumption;
• reduced greenhouse gas emissions;
• improved water-use efficiencies;
• increased utilization rates of recycled fibre;
• reduced waste to landfill, and
• improved quality of emissions to air and water.

References

Further references are provided here which presents a more balanced view of the environmental aspects of catalogues versus its digital peers:-