As the World Turns Green
A recent seminar on green initiatives had some distributors and suppliers in the audience seeing red—and others, gray. The occasion was Indianapolis-based IBSA’s 2008 Conference, held July 21-23 at the Hyatt Regency Indianapolis. While industry professionals certainly support the sourcing of fiber from well-managed forests, they are less than thrilled with the thousands of dollars associated with obtaining chain-of-custody (CoC) certification. Some wondered where the money was, in fact, ending up. Others complained end-users—the group driving certification in the first place—will frequently opt for non-certified stock after realizing it can increase costs. Still, others pointed out that projects printed on CoC-certified stock can ultimately be very eco-unfriendly, and that going green goes far beyond specifying stock.
Print Professional invited experts in printing, paper manufacturing and sustainability to offer their insights.
Cost of Doing Business
EMA Specialty Envelopes & More, Austell, Ga., recently obtained both FSI and SFC certification. Company President Aaron Hyte admitted doing so was a “royal pain,” but given the choice between biting the bullet and getting it done or watching a significant portion of his business bite the dust, he made the logical choice.
“Two of our major customers—among the top five [distributors] in the forms industry—told us if we didn’t go forward with FSC and SFI certification, we would no longer be able to [produce] certain orders, since their end-users were demanding [CoC-certified] products,” he recounted. “Industry wide, 2008 has been one of the worst years in the associated envelope, paper, printing and forms business in the last decade. So, to have to go through the added cost has been difficult.”
Hyte estimated the five- to six-month certification process cost EMA more than $5,500. Opting for simultaneous dual certification helped to reduce costs. “Still, it’s like [the cost was] twice as much because of how poor the year has been,” he added.
Hyte noted costs depend on company size, and include the hours consultants and auditors are on site and the time key staff and management devote to developing the employee training program establishing protocol for utilizing and shipping certified stock. EMA designated one of its IT specialists as the key contact for certification issues, which saved the company time and money.
“A decade ago, when ‘recycled’ was the buzz word, no one wanted to pay more for [recycled products] and it simply fell flat. But today’s concept of green initiatives and social responsibility is at a corporate level, so it’s a whole new ball game,” observed Hyte. “Companies don’t have to [become] certified and [therefore,] can save thousands of dollars. But, at some point in time, when they perceive they are losing something, then it will become a have-to.”
You Get What You Pay For
Karen Steer, a representative for Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), stated the organization has streamlined the process as much as it can while still maintaining the integrity of the system. “FSC is only as good as its [CoC], so we need to require that everyone along the value chain is certified, which means bringing an independent third-party auditor on site. “Obviously there are costs associated with this, [as well as with] all the documentation they require,” she said. “We certainly realize [people] are grumbling about [costs], but hopefully it’s still worthwhile for printers, distributors and paper companies to be able to access the FSC-certified market.”
Steer went on to explain FSC only charges an annual fee, which can range from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand dollars. As for the certifying agencies—the main source driving the expense—she noted they are looking at various strategies to reduce their costs. “For instance, some groups are trying to have more local auditors available or have one auditor go out and do certification assessments for a number of different companies at one time to reduce travel costs,” she shared.
Green is the New Gray Area
Dan Kelly, director of marketing for IBSA, observed some materials printed on certified stock—ironically, many of them promoting green solutions—often feature petroleum-based inks and eye-catching shapes that necessitate wasteful trimming, and are printed in quantities almost guaranteeing hefty donations to recycling bins and landfills. “As a distributor, to see a supplier has [CoC] certification is not enough for me. It happens to be the [dominant trend] out there, and people believe as long as their paper is certified, they’re being green,” reported Kelly. “I need to educate my customers that, first of all, [CoC-certified stock] is probably going to cost you more. So, let’s look at what your goals really are as a company in promoting green to your customers and shareholders, and see if there are other alternatives and opportunities to do things that are more green, and won’t cost you more.”
Make no mistake, Kelly believes CoC certifications “are great,” but more can be accomplished by carefully considering the life-cycle of a product and what the customer hopes to accomplish with it, and then choosing efficient design options that use less materials.
Kelly noted some companies are going well beyond obtaining CoC certification in their green initiatives. One manufacturer’s facility is built for optimum energy efficiency, even capturing and circulating heat from their presses to help with wintertime heating. “These are the [types of companies] I want to partner with and share their stories with my customers,” added Kelly. “Certification is currently a fad that will eventually be mainstream. The focus will become: ‘Now, how can we improve [upon] this’? Being green is not an end point; it is a journey. You can’t just buy into one [aspect] and think that’s it. If it’s important to you, you’ll learn all you can and continue to find ways to improve.”
Alternatives Fueling Movement
Gary Jones, director of environmental health and safety for PIA/GATF, Sewickley, Pa., also mentioned “an undercurrent of discontent” as printers find themselves reacting to customers clamoring for CoC certified stock. And, he agreed with Kelly that CoC certification is only the tip of the iceberg.
“There is a mutiny building out there, particularly among medium- and small-sized printers,” he acknowledged. “They may only have one or two big customers demanding FSC- or SFI-certified products, but go ahead with obtaining the certification to keep the business. Then, when customers find out the cost of the products has increased, they don’t want to pay the [additional] money. For larger printers, the costs associated [with certification] are easier to absorb and justify. The average cost for a printer may be about $10,000 over a five-year period plus associated travel expenses for auditors.”
Jones went on to say, “Printers have to respond to customer demand [for eco-friendly solutions], and many believe CoC is the only game in town—but, it isn’t.” He suggested other ways printers and their customers can support environmental responsibility:
• Include the classic, chasing-arrows recycle symbol on projects; it doesn’t require certification and guidelines for its use are outlined by the American Forest & Paper Association on its website (www.afandpa.org).
• Indicate the percentage of
papers recycled content, especially post-consumer content.
• Indicate carbon neutral status; if not in the actual sheet, then some offsetting of carbon in the manufacturing process.
• Note the bleaching process used if it is elemental chlorine free.
In Trees We Trust
CoC certification for mills, printers and distributors relates to tracking certified wood and paper coming in and going out. For tree growers, land certification sets out requirements for managing the land sustainably—including caring for the trees, protecting biodiversity, limiting surface water run off, generating regrowth and not harvesting at a faster rate than growing.
“I believe the number-one environmental issue we have to deal with in the world today is CO2 emissions,” said Craig Liska, vice president for sustainability for Verso Paper, Memphis, Tenn. “When you look at the value of forests and what they do in terms of absorbing carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen, it’s the key reason for trying to maintain sustainably managed forests.”
Sixty percent of the wood Liska buys comes from certified landowners. ‘That’s a pretty good number when you consider only 11 percent of the world’s forests are certified,” he continued. “Today, 60 percent of the forests in the United States are owned by small, family landowners.” He reported many small landowners are not interested in certification due to costs, and fail to see any economic value to spending the money. “Awareness is the first step, and we are talking to landowners about certification to increase the percentage of certified fiber we’re able to buy,” continued Liska. “There’s a lack of certified fiber out there, which increases demand, and [subsequently] the cost of certified paper.”
Verso Paper recently announced it’s providing a $100,000 grant over two years to the Trust to Conserve Northeast Forestlands to expand participation in the organization’s FSC group certification program. The program seeks to identify small, family forestland owners and certify their lands to the FSC forest management standard. The Verso grant will provide resources to expand the program throughout the six states currently covered under the group—Maine, Conn., N.H., Mass., N.Y. and Vt.—with a goal of 100,000 additional acres certified after the first 12 months.
Verso Paper has been working with Maine—even meeting with the governor—to increase the amount of certified fiber in the state. “The State is doing its part to make the certification process simpler, but it still takes one-on-one communication with landowners,” Liska added. “The very reason we [partnered] with the Trust is its strength in dealing with individual landowners. The Trust works with FSC, but even if it was SFI, we would have been ... pleased—we recognize all programs trying to promote sustainably managed forests equally.”
He mentioned some customers do have a preference for FSC, but sometimes it’s difficult to get FSC-certified wood. “There just isn’t that much out there,” Liska added. “Out of the 60 percent certified material we use, only 4 percent is coming from FSC-certified landowners. A much larger portion is SFI-certified or comes from other programs, such as ATFS (American Tree Farm System) and the Master logger program. Promoting [CoC] certification not only promotes biodiversity while protecting animals and water suppliers, but it also contributes a major part of the solution to climate change.” PPR