[GreenYes] "Listening Study" On Environmental Paper Issues

["susankinsella.com" <seek@susankinsella.com>]

We hope to get your perspectives on some of the questions in this study.
Please send us comments or let us know we should call or e-mail you. We
would appreciate your circulating it to others who might have valuable input
for it, too. - Thanks.

 NEWS RELEASE o NEWS RELEASE o NEWS RELEASE o NEWS RELEASE

Contact:     Susan Kinsella, Conservatree, 415/721-4230

NEW STUDY WILL TAKE "SNAPSHOT" OF ENVIRONMENTAL PAPER INDUSTRY

Market demand for environmental office and printing papers is lagging, and a
new "listening study" intends to find out why.

"Recycled printing and office papers have been losing market share since
1995, despite the fact that they are higher quality and lower priced than
ever before," says Susan Kinsella, executive director of Conservatree.
"There are hot spots of interest in chlorine free, tree free and sustainably
forested papers, but they are still a miniscule part of the market. Yet
environmental papers are more important now than ever. They reduce resource
use ­ not only trees, but also energy and water ­ plus reduce pollution both
here and in other countries around the world."

The study, funded through a grant  from the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency and coordinated by Conservatree, will provide a comprehensive
"snapshot" of the industry and its markets, in order to reveal the basis for
the obstacles slowing market development. It is also expected to provide a
comprehensive foundation for understanding and discussing the issues, as
well as recommend courses of action to further work on resolving the
underlying barriers.  The study will include as wide a range of participants
as possible, including collaborators in gathering perspectives and
information. 

The Recycled Paper Coalition, a group of more than 250 major corporations
and organizations such as Bank of America, Hewlett Packard, R.R. Donnelley &
Sons, and Walt Disney Company that are dedicated to increasing recycled
paper use, will collaborate in researching issues blocking market
development.  

"Wešre excited to lend our support and knowledge to this vital project,"
says Darby Hoover, executive director of the Recycled Paper Coalition.
"This study will illuminate the assumptions and needs of paper
manufacturers, distributors, and end users, and is a crucial step toward
moving forward together to improve the market for environmental papers."
Other collaborators will be brought on for other portions of the project.

Starting with a list of nearly 100 questions reflecting issues and
controversies within the environmental paper field, Conservatree will gather
perspectives from all interested and involved parties on the questions of
concern to them. It will also identify as much relevant research and
technology as possible.

"We want to talk to everyone involved in manufacturing, marketing, buying
and using environmental papers and hear as many different viewpoints as
possible," says Kinsella. "That includes people from forestry companies,
manufacturers, distributors, printers, publishers, corporate and government
purchasers, as well as those who promote using environmental papers, such as
recycling coordinators and environmental groups. This study is not intended
to decide which perspective is Œright,š but rather to give equal and
respectful representation to each opinion that impacts an issue. We hope to
help make it more possible for people with differences of opinion to work
together on achieving an environmentally and economically sustainable paper
production system for the future."

Conservatree is a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing
comprehensive information and tools for purchasers to make informed choices
in environmental papers. Its predecessor, Conservatree Paper Company, was a
for-profit distributor, specializing in recycled paper, which ended paper
sales in 1994 and closed in 1997. The non-profit organization, begun in
1998, is independent, does not sell paper, and networks with people with all
types of perspectives on environmental paper issues.

Further information is at
http://www.conservatree.com/learn/ListenSnapshot/Listen.siYN
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