Conservation 101: the Compete to Conserve Blog

photo credit: House Of Sims

Heralded as the epitome of sleek and modern, the idea of the paperless office or even the paperless society has been around since computers first appeared on the scene. And yet, we are still using paper—and a lot of it. According to Lyra Research, about 15.2 trillion pages are printed worldwide, a number that will reportedly grow 30% over the next ten years.

For its proponents, going paperless means less clutter, improved efficiency, lower costs and environmental benefits. Indeed, the idea of eliminating the mounds of papers that inevitably accumulate as we go about our daily lives certainly sounds appealing. And, electronic junk mail, while similarly distracting (and generally more pornographic), seems more easily discarded than traditional paper junk mail that often requires a thorough going-through before tossing it into the trash or recycle bin. So, too, the technical capabilities of document management systems and flash drives have made it easier to store and manage large and numerous files rather than have hard copy printouts. This rings true in business and private life, as anybody with a digital camera can attest. Electronic technology is also faster—no more “snail mail” or worries about the ever-increasing postage rate.

As for the environmental benefits, going paperless means the ultimate in waste and natural resource prevention. According to the Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC), the U.S. alone manufactures 90 million tons of paper each year, and the annual consumption rate is about 100 million tons. Most of this paper production—an estimated 25% of the annual U.S. timber cut—remains virgin fiber, with only 35% of current consumption using recycled fiber.

Despite all of these advantages, the paper just keeps piling up. Why?

Undoubtedly there remains the need to “see” the material we read in hard copy, that is, the ability to glance through a document from beginning to end without the fuzziness of computer screen or the inconvenience (especially with large documents) of having to scroll down inch by inch. Electronic books, in particular, can prove slow going, thereby prompting the user to print the material instead. In fact, the wealth of information available through the World Wide Web seems to stimulate the use of printed copies rather than to stem it. This is the “paper paradox,” or, the idea that with access to more information, there is a greater need and desire to print. According to The Myth of the Paperless Office authors Abigail J. Sellen and Richard H.R. Harper, improved technology has not gotten “rid of paper” but rather “shifted the ways in which it is used.” Photocopies of the past have become the self-generated computer printouts of today. Finally, there exists for many the continuing need to have a hard copy backup of their computer files, as anyone who has experienced a full-system meltdown knows.

Even so, companies and other waste prevention organizations are urging people today to go if not completely paperless, at least to use less paper. Campaigns promoting recycled paper, 2-sided printing and a “think before you print mentality” abound. Recycled paper is certainly more widely available, of better quality and more competitively priced than in the past. And, many businesses have set their computer printers to the 2-sided default option. University campuses nationwide have taken the “think before you print” slogan to a whole new level with “pay for print” computer labs. At the University of San Francisco, for example, students pay 3 cents per printed page—a nominal fee but one that certainly makes the user think twice about the necessity of printing that extra copy.

Perhaps the most interesting development in the quest to reduce paper consumption is the idea of “erasable paper”. Introduced in November 2006 as a joint research project with Xerox Research Centre in Canada (XRCC) and Palo Alto Research Center in California (PARC), this experimental technology creates temporary documents with photosensitive paper and a printer that “uses a blue UV light-emitting diode instead of ink or toner.” Known as “photochromic switching,” the printed type disappears naturally after 16-24 hours or immediately when exposed to heat, thus allowing the paper to be used multiple times.

The impetus behind the concept was the acknowledgement that while many people still prefer to use paper in their daily work, much of that paper—printouts of e-mails and other web materials—is only used once and then discarded.

Technology such as Xerox’s erasable paper has yet to reach the commercial mainstream. Nevertheless, the verdict is still out on the paperless society.

For more information, see

Environmental Protection Agency: http://www.epa.gov/jtr/comm/paper.htm

California Integrated Waste Management: http://www.ciwmb.ca.gov/BizWaste/OfficePaper/

Forest Stewardship Council: http://fscus.org/paper/common_vision.php

PARC: http://www.parc.com/about/pressroom/news/2008-04-29-pcworld_techday.html

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