Print industry should come out fighting on CSR

Two Tomorrows executive chairman Mark Line doesn’t buy the argument that paper and print is always the unsustainable option

Why doesn’t the print industry do more to fight its corner in terms of its CSR profile?

Over the last ten years, the move away from reliance on print media has raised massive challenges for the industry. Advances in electronic media have forced everyone from paper manufacturers to publishers to consider their business strategy.

Many opinion-formers argue that greater use of electronic media can only bring environmental benefits. They argue that, by cutting down fewer trees, creating less paper waste and increasing usage of online media, the world can only be a better place. I’m not sure I buy this argument.

Electronic media require massive global infrastructure, not least to support access to the Internet and for the hardware needed to view information. The industry hasn’t exactly raced to be transparent about the energy profile of the technology behind the Internet – although this is changing, largely as a result of criticism.

How can we compare, for example, the carbon profile of unique users viewing a web page with the carbon burden of a print run of equivalent reports? I don’t believe anyone has yet come up with a slick way of expressing these numbers. And although the environmental burden per user view of an individual web page might be relatively low, the total burden imposed by all electronic media is huge.

Until recently the energy burden of the massive data warehouses that support the Internet has slipped under the radar. This issue is just starting to attract broader attention now. Some of the big names are not being transparent about the carbon footprint of their operations.

As just one example, Google's data centre in Oregon could use as much energy as the entire English city of Newcastle when it comes fully online in 2011. In 2000, data centres as a whole were estimated as contributing 0.8% of total US electrical consumption; ten years later that number must have increased considerably. And for every 100 watts those data centres consumed, only 2.5 watts resulted in useful computing.

Recent research has also highlighted that performing two Google searches (a search meaning a series of web searches leading to a conclusion) from a desktop computer can generate about the same amount of carbon dioxide as boiling a kettle for a cup of tea.

So there are massive inefficiencies.

Although the main technology suppliers recognise this and are responding to pressure to reduce the environmental burden of making and using PCs, PDAs, web-enabled mobile handsets and so on, collectively their impacts are enormous.

The ICT sector is estimated to be responsible for two per cent of carbon emissions in Europe. The industry average for high power usage effectiveness (PUE) is two, which means for every watt used by IT machinery two watts is required to cool it off. Some industry players are disclosing much improved performance, for example Google is quoting 1.21 and Microsoft 1.22.

Another factor we cannot avoid in comparing print media with the Internet is that modern technology remains a luxury enjoyed by only the relatively wealthy. There is an oft-quoted statistic that half the world’s population has yet to make its first phone call. Perhaps that number is changing with the mobile revolution; nevertheless, the Digital Divide remains a burning social issue. From a global perspective, print media are an essential force in communications.

And often, web technology just isn’t right for getting your message across. I work in corporate reporting, for example. Many of our clients are experimenting with all sorts of exciting technology as part of their communications mix, but most recognise that sometimes, a tangible product you can hold in your hand is simply the most effective medium.

So in my opinion there are opportunities for the print industry to raise a number of valid questions in defending its CR position. The world at large is probably under the impression that forest products are a ‘bad thing’, but this is far from the truth. Properly managed, sustainable forests are vital to the economies of many countries, creating jobs often in rural settings where there are few other opportunities for economic activity. What is more, well-managed forests are an important carbon sink, particularly in the early stages of the growth cycle. I’m not convinced that recycled is always right.

So, with all that in mind, why doesn’t the print industry respond to the challenge and fight its corner better?