Print Book Industry

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The Green Press Initiative proposes an increased use of recycled paper or paper certified by the Forest Stewardship Council to be used in the production of print books. Such approved paper would only be derived from forests that are not endangered as despite a movement towards more e-books in the future, a significant portion of books will continue to be produced in print. This is especially so as publishers often publish not only hardcover but paperback copies of their books in order to gain a wider audience.

Green Press Initiative has also proposed the Book Industry Treatise on Environmentally Responsible Collaborative Agreement for responsible paper use, as a road map for industry players to engage in more environmentally and socially responsible practices in their publishing efforts. For example, the primary goal of the treatise is to increase the use of recycled fiber in the industry from 5% to 30% in the next 5 years. This industry treatise was targeted at 25 stakeholders and is governed by a Leadership Council, largely made up of the bigger publishing companies such as Harvard University Press. Estimated savings presented were 4.9 million trees, 2.1 billion gallons of water and 264 million pounds of solid waste annually. To date, the treatise has been signed by 118 publishers, 2 paper mills and 4 printers.

With the ultimate aim of reducing the overproduction of books and quantity of paper needed to produce each print book, one can ultimately still adopt the more environmentally-friendly option of frequenting one’s community library such that the environmental impact of one book can be spread across an entire community through the shared perusal of print books.