Deforestation is one of the main environmental problems we’re facing in these times. 42% of all global wood harvest is used to make paper. Is it really worth it to cut down our life saving trees for this product?
17 trees are cut to make one ton of paper
Paper accounts for 26% of total waste at landfills From 2010 to 2060, the global consumption of pulp and paper is expected to double. The same will the amount of paper waste. An increased paper production will also add further to the pressure on the world’s forests that are already in a critical state - and constantly getting worse.
As we speak, more than 199 tons of paper has already been produced (paper production in 15 seconds).
324 liters of water is used to make 1 kilogram of paper.
10 liters of water is needed to make one piece of A4 paper.
93% of paper comes from trees.
50% of the waste of businesses is composed of paper.
To print a Sunday edition of the New York Times requires 75,000 trees!
Recycling 1 ton of paper saves around 682.5 gallons of oil, 26,500 liters of water and 17 trees.
Packaging makes up 1/3 or more of our trash.
U.S offices use 12.1 trillion sheets of paper a year.
Paper accounts for 25% of landfill waste and 33% of municipal waste.
With all the paper we waste each year, we can build a 12 foot high wall of paper from New York to California!
Lessening of paper usage was predicted due to the electronic revolution. It didn’t happen. Demand for paper is expected to double before 2030
Every tree produces enough oxygen for 3 people to breathe.
Bio-pulping
Kraft pulping is the most common form of traditional pulping. Estimated to form 80% of the total chemical pulping industry. This involves digesting of wood chips at elevated temperature and pressure in “white liquor”. White liquor is a water solution of sodium sulfide and sodium hydroxide. The lignin that binds the cellulose fibers together in the wood is chemically dissolved by this white liquor.
Kraft pulping produces a large amount of pollution. Particulate emissions from the kraft process occur largely from the recovery furnace, lime kiln, and the smelt dissolving tank. These emissions are mainly sodium salts, with some calcium salts from the lime kiln.
Bio pulping is the concept of deliberately harnessing white-rot fungi for delignification. It includes the treatment of fibrous raw materials with ligninolytic organisms prior to conventional processes. Of bio pulping are improved strength properties, higher yield, reduced cooking chemicals and reduced refining energy. The process leads to saving 30% energy and improved quality of paper.
Bio-bleaching
Bio bleaching involves the treatment of pulp with hemicellulose before conventional bleaching sequence. Hemicellulose increases the accessibility of bleach chemicals to lignin removal. Advantages are increased brightness, ceiling, comparative/improved strength properties, decreased bleach chemical requirements, decreased toxicity of bleach effluents and decreased pollution load in the effluents.
