Myth: “In order to make paper, forests are destroyed.”
The truth about paper: “The wood used in the manufacturing of paper comes from plantations established for that purpose.”
- The Spanish paper industry contributes to increasing forest surface area.
Paper is made from the cellulose of rapid-growth trees, which in the case of the Spanish paper industry tend to be pine and eucalyptus trees cultivated for this purpose on tree plantations which otherwise would not exist. Preferably the plantations are established on waste land once used for agricultural purposes and which has since been abandoned. As a result of these tree plantations, the surface area of forests increases.
Thanks to the activity of the paper industry, in Spain there are 430,000 hectares of pine and eucalyptus forest (2.4% of the total forest surface area,) which absorb 50 million tons of CO2, with an annual increase of CO2 storage of 2.6 million tons. European forests have grown by over 30% since 1950.
- Of the 15 million m3 of timber felled annually by Spain, only 4 million m3 are used for paper manufacturing.
The felling of trees is associated predominantly with the paper industry, despite the fact that only 25% of the trees felled, in Spain for example, are used to make paper and these always proceed from tree plantations.
Myth: “Only a small amount of paper is recycled in Spain:”
The truth about paper: “We recycle more than 70% of the paper we consume.”
- Spain is amongst the countries with the highest rates of recovered and recycled paper and cardboard.
In 2008, 5 million tonnes of used paper were collected and recycled in Spain, more than 70% of all the paper products we use.
- Paper is recycled more than any other material in Spain.
Myth: Only recycled paper is ecological.”
The truth about paper: “All paper is ecological.”
- What do we mean when we say a paper is ecological?
The truth is that all paper, being a natural, recyclable product, is ecological. In addition, it is manufactured with renewable and recyclable raw materials and has a sustainable origin (Chains of Custody). In the case of Spain, 75% is produced in accord with standardized and controlled environmental standards (ISO 14001, EMAS, Licenses, etc…). Indeed, paper with virgin fibre fully meets all the conditions for being considered ecological as well.
- The exploitation cycle of pulp fibre remains vital and functioning thanks to the continuous input of a certain amount of virgin fibre.
This is necessary because pulp fibre gradually deteriorates each time it is used (it can be re-used approximately six times) and because 19% of the paper that we consume cannot be recovered for recycling due to the nature of its use: books, documents, hygienic and sanitary papers, etc…
Myth: “The paper industry is antiquated and typical of underdeveloped countries.”
The truth about paper: “52% of the global production of paper is concentrated in Europe, the United States and Canada.
- The paper industry is capital-intensive and requires large investments in order to carry out ongoing technological, production and environmental development.
There is a clear correlation between the GDP of a country and the amount of paper it produces. Europe is currently the largest producer of paper, followed by North America, with Asia clearly on the rise. Spain is the 6th largest producer of paper and pulp in the EU, with 99 industrial plants, some of which are the most modern in Europe.
Myth: “Paper mills are dirty.”
The truth about paper: “The manufacturing of paper is a technologically advanced, efficient and responsible production process.”
- In recent years, the Spanish paper industry has led an “environmental revolution”:
- 94% of the total production of the sector is carried out in accordance with an Environmental Management System (ISO or EMAS). This figure is one of the highest in Spanish industry.
- The use of water in the industrial process has decreased almost 40% since 1990, while waste per ton of pulp and water has decreased 44% and 75%, respectively. In the paper-making process, the water used is not consumed: only 5% of the water used is consumed; the remaining 95% is re-used in purified form.
- Since 1999, the chemical demand of oxygen (CDO) of the effluents produced by ton within the sector have been reduced by 57% for paper and 70% for pulp. Suspended solids by ton decreased 55% for pulp and 92% for paper.
- 100% of the production of whitened pulp is ECF (Elemental Chlorine Free) or TCF (Totally Chlorine Free).
- The sector uses 97% clean or renewable fuels such as natural gas (74%) and residual biomass from the manufacturing process (23%). In addition, it produces close to 50% of the renewable energy with biomass generated in Spain.
- The paper industry is one of the biggest supporters in Spain of cogeneration, a system which produces electrical and thermal energy simultaneously for industrial consumption, with a high level of performance, thus saving primary energy and reducing emissions. It is the sector leader in Spain in the production of cogeneration electricity
- High energy efficiency: the energy generated by the Spanish paper industry, through such high-efficiency methods as cogeneration, covers the total energy consumption of the sector.
- The paper industry is subject to very strict environmental safety controls.
Myth: “Paper is a product of the past.”
The truth about paper: “Paper: the natural response to development”
- Due to its versatility, the continuous development of new applications, and its environmental properties paper is the material of the future in a society increasingly committed to sustainable development.
- The per capita consumption of paper in Europe and Spain has increased.
The average per capita consumption of paper in Europe increased from 160 kilograms a year, at the beginning of the nineties, to the current 188 kilograms. During this same period, per capita consumption in Spain also grew, increasing from 116 to 170 kilograms. - Along with traditional applications, more than 30% of the paper we use today is for new applications which ten years ago did not even exist.
- Modern communication technologies have brought printing to the home, to the office…: never has it been so easy to print a document on paper.
- According to a recent poll carried out by Sigma Dos for the Foro del Papel (Paper Forum), Spanish consumers show high overall satisfaction with paper (7 out of 10), 60% of the population prefers receiving paper versions of bills, receipts, bank statements, etc. than consulting the Internet or receiving them by electronic mail, and 75% believe that companies that attempt to eliminate paper from their interaction with customers do so in order to cut costs and increase profits, not for ecological reasons.