Skip to main content.

FutureProof: A guide towards sustainable publishing

Sustainable publishing

Through publications we inform, advise, educate, raise awareness and seek feedback. Publishing managers, designers, printers and others can play an important role in helping to minimise the environmental impact of the printing industry. This guide will help you consider and make decisions on environmental criteria when planning a publication from design, paper and ink choices, through to supply chain management.

Taking steps towards sustainable publishing

Taking action and making a difference is at the centre of this guide. The guide outlines five steps you can take towards sustainable publishing. You may want to focus initially on steps two and three as they have the potential to make the biggest difference. However, the steps before and after are also important.

Using the guide

This guide should be used at the initial planning stage of any publication and considered alongside other publishing criteria such as value for money, your audience and the image you want to present. Read the steps you are interested in. If you want more information, click on the link at the bottom of the step.

STEP ONE: Plan for sustainability up front

Why

Planning for sustainability early in the project can save time and resources. Many decisions made at the initial planning stages can place limitations on or create opportunities for what you can do at later stages.

Many aspects dealt with appropriately at the beginning can result in cost saving and environmental benefits.

What you can do

  1. Check that a printed item is the best way to get information across.
  2. Print summary reports and put the full report on the web.
  3. Print on both sides of the paper when you can.

Other considerations

  • Be clear about your target audience and actual number of copies required.
  • Check whether digital printing is more appropriate than offset printing.
  • Size matters - design to use all the paper specified and minimise printers’ off-cut waste.
  • Reduce the use of resources when working through the drafting and proofing processes.

STEP TWO: Make a difference with paper and ink

Paper considerations

Select paper with an accredited ecolabel

An ecolabel is an independent certification that ensures important impacts are minimised for a product. Environmental labels are available in New Zealand and worldwide. Check the Environmental Choice New Zealand website for papers with current certification. Some papers hold the equivalent overseas label (eg, Blue Angel - Germany, Nordic Swan – Denmark, and the Green Seal - USA). Most ecolabels are part of the Global Ecolabelling Network (GEN). Wherever possible, select a paper that has one of these labels.

There are also environmental management schemes such as the Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS) and International Organisation for Standards 14001 (ISO) environmental management system. The Ministry for the Environment has a summary of environmental management systems on its website (link below). These schemes cover management and improvement of the paper manufacturing process, but do not provide information about actual impacts on the environment during the life cycle of the paper. The schemes are process-based rather than performance-based.

Specify recycled paper with high recycled content (recycled – 30 per cent to 100 per cent)

Recycled paper has a much smaller environmental footprint than paper manufactured from raw materials. It uses fewer trees, less water, energy and landfill space, and results in less pollutants being released to the air and water. Current life cycle analysis work on paper production, recycling and disposal indicate clear net advantages in the use of recycled paper. See, for example, www.ofee.gov/recycled/descript.htm and www.cfd.rmit.edu.au/programs/life_cycle_assessment/paper_packaging_lca

The problems that printers had from lint in earlier recycled papers are no longer an issue for many of the modern recycled papers. But not all recycled papers are guaranteed for high-speed printers – ask the supplier about specific types.

If your printing job requires archiving or permanent preservation, be aware that recycled paper is not always guaranteed for this purpose. However, improved technology means this situation is changing.

Not all papers are the same when it comes to recycling. Waste from high-grade printers and sorted office paper can now be recycled back into high-grade office and printing paper, but mixed paper and newsprint is only recyclable into such paper grades as newsprint, sanitary paper, packaging liners or pulped paper products.

Specify paper manufactured using a minimum of chlorine (TCF or ECF process)

When virgin paper is made, the pulp must be bleached to remove lignin. Lignin is a naturally occurring compound which holds the wood together but contributes to yellowing if it remains in the paper. When recycled paper is remade into a white paper, it must be bleached to remove inks. Traditionally, to make the paper white, chlorine gas was used, but this resulted in the creation of highly toxic and persistent organochlorines such as dioxin. New processes reduce this potential chemical burden on the environment.

ECF/TCF explained

The ECF (elemental chlorine-free) process manufactures paper without the use of elemental chlorine, reducing 80 per cent of the potential organochlorine load to the environment. Even better is the TCF method (totally chlorine-free, also called PCF - process chlorine-free), which uses oxygen-based bleaches rather than chlorine.

TCF plants are better suited to chemical recycling as the bleaching chemicals are less corrosive. This slightly reduces pollutants and discharges to water. However, in some mills, the TCF process can require more pulp to make the same amount of paper, and can involve use of other toxic chemicals.

On balance it is preferable to avoid any paper made using elemental chlorine (EC) bleaching, specify ECF or TCF paper.

European Commission regulators consider that pulp bleaching is the major source by orders of magnitude of UPOPS (unintentionally produced persistent organic pollutants) from paper manufacture. Conventional elemental chlorine (EC) bleaching produces significantly more UPOPS than well-managed elemental chlorine-free (ECF) and totally chlorine-free (TCF) processes. Official EU best practice advice indicates that only low-kappa ECF is equivalent to TCF in terms of best practice to reduce chlorinated compound effluents. Kappa is a measure of the lignin content remaining in pulp – low kappa pulps have been processed more thoroughly and require less bleaching, and therefore less use of bleaching chemicals (UNEP 2003 (PDF 553 KB)).

For papers containing virgin (non-recycled) fibres, specify paper with a maximum level of pulp from third-party certified, sustainably managed forests

To reduce the environmental footprint of paper products, it is important to source all virgin pulp from sustainably managed plantations. This helps minimise adverse effects to water quality, soil resources, ecosystems, old-growth forests and local communities. Third-party accreditation schemes are still evolving. More information on the accreditation schemes is contained in the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry’s Timber and Wood Products Procurement Policy.

Select uncoated paper over clay-coated paper, wherever possible

Choosing a coated versus uncoated paper will depend on the look you want. During the recycling process the clay coating is removed and is generally disposed of as waste, which reduces the amount of useful fibre per tonne recovered from recycling paper by approximately one third.

Select the lowest paper weight suitable for the job

Selecting a lighter paper means you use less paper to print your publication. This saves resources and money. If you are planning to mail lots of documents, a higher paper weight may add to your distribution costs. Select a weight suitable for the type and expected life of the publication you are printing.

Try to use white paper when possible, and only as white as needed

Limit the use of dark or brightly coloured papers. The resources used in these papers are greater than in white papers. Coloured paper has been dyed and some dyes contain heavy metals and other toxic materials. Also when coloured paper is sent for recycling it needs to be bleached to remove the dye.

Specifying a paper that is brighter than it needs to be adds unnecessarily to the environmental burden of producing the paper. High grades of whiteness are created by extra bleaching processes or added ‘optical whitener’ chemicals.

Consider the advantages of selecting a paper whose pulp source is close to the mill, and whose manufacturing is close to New Zealand

Currently no paper is manufactured in New Zealand so consider Australasian-sourced alternatives using local pulp sources. A mill that sources its pulp from a local sustainably managed plantation or from a nearby catchment (eg, urban catchment for recycled paper) uses less energy than a mill that imports pulp from around the world.

This reduces the transport energy needed to manufacture and bring the paper to New Zealand, reducing the climate change impact of the paper. However, it should also be remembered that about 80 per cent of the energy in paper is used in the manufacturing process. Ecolabels address mill energy efficiency, and recycled papers are more energy efficient over the whole life cycle of the paper.

Related links

Ink considerations

Specify mineral-free inks (vegetable soy, agri-ink or water-based) wherever possible

Mineral-free inks have been in New Zealand for a number of years. At first there were problems with quality (the early inks were based on soya oil), but now vegetable inks work for a number of purposes and can be used to replace traditional inks.

The composition of the traditional printing inks varies widely. Some inks contain hazardous substances such as petroleum hydrocarbons (which release volatile organic compounds resulting in air pollution), cadmium, mercury or chromium (which are hazardous heavy metals used in pigments for colouring), or solvents used as a carrier or to aid in drying.

Why use vegetable or mineral-free inks?

Mineral oil-based inks can contain petroleum oil-based pigment carriers, and heavy metals which are used to create colour. Vegetable-based inks are now readily available and are comparable in price and performance to high-quality mineral oil-based inks.

Environmental benefits of mineral-free inks include the following:

  • The reduction and/or elimination of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) released into the atmosphere. Mineral-free inks are classified as ‘containing less than 1 per cent VOCs’. VOCs are unhealthy to breathe over long periods of time. They also harm the environment by contributing to smog.
  • They do not contain the following metals or salts: antimony, chromium, selenium, arsenic, mercury, cobalt, cadmium, manganese, lead.
  • Improved degradability because of the absence of heavy metals.
  • Healthier workplaces for printing staff.
  • Manufacturing from a renewable resource.

Coloured inks are available as vegetable inks but still can contain some heavy metals so, if possible, reduce the ink coverage. Metallic colours are harder to source as vegetable inks, so avoid using them when possible. Think about the effectiveness of the message and the target audience – what do you gain from using colour?

Tip: Inks can be labelled ‘vegetable oil-based’ products. Be aware that these may be mineral inks with vegetable ink added. To be sure, ask the supplier to state the proportion of mineral inks in the product. There are now inks coming onto the market that are 100 per cent mineral oil-free.

If not using mineral-free inks, use inks with less than 10 per cent of volatile organic compounds (VOCs)

If you cannot use mineral-free inks, specify inks with less than 10 per cent of volatile organic compounds.

Design for minimal ink coverage and avoid bleeds off the page

This ensures the ink is used as efficiently as possible. Fewer resources are used and less waste is produced. Try to minimise bleed allowance to acceptable industry needs. Be aware that you may be limiting the options you have for layout. Think about your format as this will influence the bleeds as well.

Use recycled ink wherever possible

Most inks can be recycled to make a standard black ink (this ink is not 100 per cent recycled as non-recycled ink needs to be added). Recycled black ink significantly reduces the amount of ink waste going to landfill, reuses a valuable commodity and costs slightly less than standard black inks. There are limitations to the use of recycled black ink, such as its suitability for some methods of printing.

Some ink manufacturers now add similar colours together for recycling. For instance, all recycled red ink will be added together to form a certain colour red ink.

Related links

STEP THREE: Make a difference with finished form

Why

Publications can take many forms. Some of these have larger environmental impacts than others and use products that are hazardous (eg, sealers) and reduce the ability to recycle the product.

By considering the environmental factors in the finished form of the publication you will help ensure:

  • the publication can be recycled at the end of its life
  • no hazardous chemicals are used to coat the publication.

Your publication can have a low environmental impact and still look good.

What you can do

  1. Use aqueous sealers.
  2. Avoid hot glue melts (used in perfect binding), where practicable.
  3. Avoid plastic lamination.

Other considerations

Avoid using PVC and other non-recyclable material for covers.

STEP FOUR: Influence distribution and suppliers

Influencing distribution

Why

Transporting publications around the country and the world uses energy and money. Sometimes, if the person receiving it has moved address or is not interested, it is a waste of resources.

The form in which an item is sent can also vary. Some of the forms use substances that can reduce the ability to recycle or reuse the product.

By considering the environmental aspects of distribution you will help:

  • ensure the publication goes to only those who would be interested, so minimising the number of extra copies
  • save costs in mailing
  • ensure resources are used as many times as practicable.

Considering ways to distribute your publication can help save resources and money.

What you can do

  1. Avoid self-adhesive labels where possible. If using them, select removable aqueous emulsions.
  2. Update mailing lists regularly.
  3. Avoid flow wrapping.

Other considerations

  • Print mailing information directly onto envelopes or brochures.
  • Consider mailing more than one document in one envelope.
  • Use reusable or re-sealable envelopes instead of extra envelopes.
  • Specify envelopes manufactured with recycled stock.

Influencing suppliers (designers and printers)

Why

The designers and printers you work with have a large influence on whether or not your publication is environmentally sound.

By influencing your suppliers to make environmentally sound choices you will help:

  • ensure your good practice is carried on by your suppliers
  • reward those suppliers who are making positive steps towards reducing their impact on the environment
  • help encourage good environmental practice throughout the whole industry.

Early contact with designers and printers is an important way you can make sure environmental issues are considered.

What you can do

Designer and printer information

  1. Ask what is being done to ensure the designer and printer is compliant with health and safety and environmental legislation.
  2. Ask whether the designer and printer have an environmental policy or environmental management system or an energy management policy or system.

Other considerations

  • Ask what is being done to reduce the amount of solid waste sent to landfill.
  • Ask what is being done by the designer and printer to manage and audit their supply chains.

Specific printer information

  1. Ask whether the printer is compliant with all resource consent conditions and by-laws.
  2. Ask what is being done to minimise air emissions, including VOCs, ozone-depleting substances and toxins, and to reduce chemical use or discharge to sewers.
  3. Ask whether the printer makes efforts to minimise the side-effects of cleaning.

Other considerations

Ask whether the printer recycles or reuses their cleaning rags, waste inks and ink containers.

STEP FIVE: Make a statement

Why

By considering environmental impacts and making choices towards sustainable products, you have made a positive difference. Make sure you tell people about this and encourage others to be responsible.

By making your mark you help:

  • ensure your audience knows about the positive environmental considerations you have taken
  • create awareness of what can be done to reduce the publishing industry’s impact on the environment.

Tell others what a great job you have done and increase your profile.

What you can do

  1. Make a statement about the contents of the publication (eg, recycled paper percentage, bleaching process, ink used).
  2. Encourage good behaviour.

Last updated: 24 July 2009