L.A. to buy only 100% post-consumer recycled copy paper

The City of Los Angeles has pledged to make a complete switch to 100% post-consumer recycled copy paper! Nine other big California cities and counties have pledged the same:  Berkeley, Pasadena, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, San Jose, Santa Barbara, Santa Monica, and the County of Marin.

This switch to paper from paper was announced yesterday by Green Cities California, a coalition of sustainable cities that brings together environmental executives of these jurisdictions to cooperatively and collectively undertake enviro-friendly initiatives. Each Green California Cities member is committed to the "Green Cities California Sustainability Resolution," which encourages cooperative sustainable action.

In addition to switching paper, Green Cities California members will also work on paper conservation efforts, electronic document storage to double-sided copying. Some of Green Cities California members, such as Santa Monica and Santa Barbara, have already been using only 100% post-consumer paper. Santa Monica, for example, switched from 50% to 100% post-consumer copy paper in 2004, according to Craig Perkins, director of Santa Monica's Environmental & Public Works Management Department.

Los Angeles, on the other hand, uses only some 100% post-consumer paper at the moment. Why? The city actually hasn't been able to find a paper supplier that can meet L.A.'s big green paper needs, according to Shannon Parry, an environment analyst for Santa Monica's Environmental Programs Division who's been working with Green Cities California. In fact, what Green Cities California is trying to do is drive the green market to make sustainable options more readily available while creating green Californian jobs.

"Right now, it's sort of a chicken and an egg situation with paper," Parry said. "What has been said to us [by the paper companies] is there is not enough of a market for this paper." Now, cities are proving companies wrong by committing to buying this eco-friendly paper the day it's available -- in large quantities. After all, Green Cities California members annually purchase half a billion sheets of office paper, at a cost exceeding $5 million. The commitment to buying eco-paper shows paper companies that what's holding back the green movement "is not desire, it's not cost -- it's availability," Parry said.

While switching to eco-paper will in itself bring environmental benefits, Parry said Green Cities California's long-term goal is to bring about big changes in the California economy and job market. At the moment, the paper used in Santa Monica goes to China for recycling because California no longer has any paper recycling plants. If we created a bigger market for recycled paper products in California, we could foster the creation of our own paper recycling plants -- lowering our carbon footprint while providing green jobs for Californians. "It's not longer the jobs OR the economy dialogue," Parry emphasized. "It's about jobs AND the economy."

Each quarter, Green Cities California will announce a new eco-initiative, like eliminating bottled water, promoting manufacturer responsibility for solid and toxic waste, and purchasing local foods. Imagine what would happen to California agriculture if all municipal governments in California started demanding local and sustainably-produced foods from its food suppliers!

In the meantime: Are you a paper supplier with lots of 100% post-consumer recycled paper to sell? The City of L.A.'s ready to buy your products.

Image courtesy of Fuji Xerox

Comments

[Go Green!]

How sad that in order to recycle paper it has to be shipped overseas. It seems like the amount of pollution created from the ships would negate the point of recycling.

I am glad that California cities are stepping up to the plate though!

[David Quigg]

We produce more 100% recycled paper than the City of LA could ever use.

It’s produced in Washington State (not the East Coast), made with Green-e Certified fossil fuel free energy that we make on site (not Green tags). Our Harbor 100 is 100% post consumer, FSC Certified and all of our facilities industrial waste is used on our family farm as a soil supplement. We make 25 semi trucks of paper per day and because of lack of customer demand 100% recycled is only 2-5% of our production. We have called LA and not gotten very far, currently the City of Santa Monica and San Jose (yes San Jose) are kicking the Cities of San Fran and LA. The City of Seattle is not only using our Harbor 100 for all of their copy paper, but also any bill that a customer receives as well as the envelopes the bills are sent out in! Seattle buys our paper which is 20% more in cost than virgin by reducing the amount they use.

We tell customers that our paper has the lowest true cost of any paper in the US, its up to each of us to decide what we are willing to pay.

[Michael Saltzman]

It's still bleached pouring tons of chlorine into the water system. Maybe the city can get by without BRIGHT WHITE paper and save the water and stop dioxins?

[Carolyn Allen]

Glad to hear about the Green Cities coalition. And that they will be focusing on a specific initiative every quarter. Who is in charge of this group...to get information about their initiatives? Please let me know if you know... contact me through my website: CaliforniaGreenSolutions.com
Thanks, Carolyn