Whether we like it or not, whether we agree with it or not, Australia will be heading into a carbon economy at some point in the near future. Many other parts of the world are already in a carbon trading setting. In the case of the EU, carbon has been a key part of their economic structure for more than a decade.

The global printing industry has responded extremely well to environmental issues that are facing the planet. It is hard to pick another industry that has made such massive reductions in ecological damage. The industry is today about 97% less damaging to the environment than it was in 1990. Now the time has come to legitimise the actual carbon impact of the industry through a rigorous life cycle analysis (LCA). This would specifically measure the carbon emitted from the production of printed matter. The International Standards Organisation in Europe has been developing a carbon LCA ISO 16759 standard, which is currently under development.

Many printing firms around the world, including those in Australia, have been ahead of the game in terms of measuring and reporting their carbon footprints. But the fundamental problem is that it is unlikely they have used the same criteria for their calculations. I’m not implying they have done the wrong thing. It’s just that unless they have absolutely measured the same manufacturing stages and followed the same processes then the numbers they produce cannot be compared to each other. In a worst-case scenario, one printer could say they are better than another printer by using numbers that simply should not be compared. Once it is released, ISO 16759 will provide the industry with a complete methodology to determine the full impact of printing on carbon emissions. That has some good outcomes, but it could pose concerns for the uneducated.

Firstly on a positive note, it does allow print buyers to compare one print concept with another at the design stage where modifying a printed job might help to reduce the carbon emissions. The industry will also be able to benchmark against the best performing print houses around the world in terms of carbon emissions. This will mean that those firms that have been able to reduce their emissions will likely attract the clients who want to been seen to be doing their bit to reduce pollution. 

However, the darker side is that whenever an industry engages in a full LCA, in this case in regards to carbon, there is a likelihood that the carbon number will look very large. It could be in the order of many multiples the weight of the printed job. So where did all that carbon come from? A full LCA will need to include everything from the forests, the entire printing processes including sales, administration, design, delivery and then waste collection, sorting and recycling or landfill. It is a massively broad topic area and many of these stages are outside the influence of the humble printing firm. But that is what a full LCA is.

The true value of print will be tested once other mass media industries such as TV, radio and the internet also conduct their own “complete” carbon LCA. That’s unlikely to happen very quickly. What is the carbon emissions from four million TV commercials 10 times a day, for a six-week period? Then the TV set goes to landfill. The printing sector is certainly putting its self out front of any other mass media by being open to scrutiny on carbon emissions How likely is it that the competing sectors will follow suit? Very unlikely in the near future. 

Phillip Lawrence is a consultant and speaker who specialises in print and the environment. He consults for paper firms, including Asia Pulp & Paper

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