PAPER STORY—part I
Paper production is an increasing concern around the world since it is predicted that it will rise in nearly half by 2010. Computer usage, contrary to expectations, did not reduce paper consumption and household printing constitutes a big part of the problem. In addition, only 20% of office or other business paper is recycled in the US. Paper production has many destructive side effects that include health, environmental and social issues.
Here is a glimpse of the issues surrounding paper production:
- Health—milling logs into paper involves using chlorine or chlorine derivatives for bleaching, which combined with organic matter (such as pulp) form organochlorine chemicals, namely dioxins. Dioxins are highly toxic carcinogens and hormone disruptors and prolonged exposure increases a risk of getting cancer to 1 in 1000. Even though about 80% of American mills switched to using less damaging form of chlorine, global mills continue to use gas form of chemical, which is the most toxic one. And the problem does not end there. Dioxins end up in waterways where they can be easily ingested by animals or humans, which poses a whole different set of risks. According to EPA, 95% of human dioxin exposure comes from animal fats (meant, dairy, eggs). Another health risk comes from dumping paper in landfills or burning it in incinerators, which releases chemicals from ink into the air, water and soil. And again they may easily end up in the food chain. Many companies still use chemicals such as lead, arsenic, cadmium, zinc, manganese, mercury, potassium, copper, chromium and nickel in their ink production, and exposure to heavy metals results in mental retardation, cancers, kidney damage and autoimmune diseases.
- Environmental—paper industry is the largest wood consumer in the world and the enormous amounts of forests cut down contribute to a great number of environmental issues, such as deforestation, loss of habitat, soil erosion, floods (to name a few). Deforestation continues at an alarming rate and it is estimated that the remaining old-growth wild forests are threatened with the increasing need for timber. Deforestation destroys biodiversity, which leads to the loss of habitat for many species of animals and plants. Moreover, cutting down forests leads to soil erosion and adds to the amount of sediment in waterways, which disrupts the marine life (some of the fish may not be able to spawn in the muddy waters). Furthermore, the lack of trees contributes to the increasing number of floods since the water has no obstruction and rushes down freely.
- Social—timber, as a constantly wanted natural resource, has been a bone of contention between nations and led to many armed conflicts. Not only does cutting down forests bring war and destruction to some societies, it also hurts the indigenous people living in many of the ancient forests around the world, for instance the Mosquito People of Nicaragua are defending their habitat against the guerrilla warfare and fights broke out in Burma, the Philippines, India and Indonesia for the control over the timber.
Unfortunately, the problems connected to paper production and consumption don’t end here. Recycling could be the answer to many of the issues however, only a fraction of the paper used around the world is recycled. Stay tuned for information about how you can minimize the problem and reduce your paper consumption.
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