Printed documents remain popular with customers and employees, but its environmental impact is often questioned. Is paper destroying the environment?
The practical and aesthetic qualities of print are hard to match through electronic alternatives. However, environmental concerns have accelerated in the last decade and paper has often been seen as the bad guy.
One common myth is that paper is responsible for mass deforestation and has an adverse impact on the environment. Perhaps historically it was a contributing factor. However, European forests have actually increased by 13.1 million hectares (ha) (8.9 %) since 1990.
Furthermore, paper is based on wood, a natural and renewable material meaning a well-managed forest which is used and replanted absorbs more carbon dioxide than a mature forest which contains older trees. In fact, paper is one of the few truly sustainable products.
Therefore it’s fair to conclude that both paper and online media can be delivered in a sustainable way if carefully selected and managed. We do this with our Aceni solutions to help deliver multi-channel communications to customers and employees in a way that considers the environment but also ensures access to communications through channels of choice.
