 |
| Greening Print |
 |
| Printing is a process
that uses paper, chemicals, water and energy. Measures
to minimise the environmental impact are often driven
by Health and Safety legislation. Increasingly, however,
more organisations and companies are demanding pro-active
environmental action from their print suppliers. Measures
to reduce a printer's environmental impact can be taken
in the following areas: |
| |
| •
Paper |
| |
Recycled
Paper remains the preferred environmental choice
because: |
| - |
it results in
energy and resource savings |
| - |
it diverts waste paper away
from land fill or incineration |
| - |
it reduces the pressure on
increased commercialisation and exploitation of
forest resources |
|
| If non-recycled
paper is used, specify papers containing FSC pulp and
those that minimise environmental impact in manufacture
(e.g. TCF (total chlorine free) paper). Check environmental
labels, such as Nordic Swan, Blue Angel, NAPM accreditation. |
| |
| •
Inks |
| |
|
| - |
select paste inks
with a higher proportion of vegetable-based oils
(e.g. soya, linseed or rapeseed oil) |
| - |
use water based inks where
liquid inks are used |
| - |
ensure that pigments are
free of heavy metals |
| - |
use inks with the lowest
percentage VOC (volatile organic compounds) possible |
| - |
UV (ultraviolet) inks reduce
solvent use but are more difficult to recycle |
| - |
move to waterless printing
to eliminate the use of solvents altogether |
|
| |
| •
Adhesives |
| |
The use
of adhesives in print finishing will often make the product
less recyclable.
There are three groups of adhesives: |
| - |
aqueous adhesives
or emulsions (e.g. polyvinyl acetate, starch, latex) |
| - |
animal glue (less used nowadays;
disapproved of by the animal welfare lobby) |
| - |
hot melts (based on synthetic
polymers) |
|
| The first
two cause fewer problems, the last constitute a significant
contaminant. The following guidelines may help: |
| - |
check whether
the adhesive is water soluble |
| - |
check with the supplier on
whether hot melts are dispersible |
| - |
so-called reactive hot melt
adhesives can easily be filtered out in the recycling
process |
| - |
use non-adhesive binding
where commercially and technically acceptable |
|
| |
| •
Organic Solvents |
| |
Volatile
Organic Compounds are a major source of pollution in the
lower atmosphere and especially in built-up areas where
respiratory problems can be caused.
We advise that you: |
| - |
use inks low
in VOC's |
| - |
use alternative press washes,
based on citrus by-products or vegetable oils. |
| - |
reduce - where possible -
alcohol in fount solutions |
| - |
investigate investment in
dry plate technology (waterless plates) |
|
| VOC 's can
be a more persistent problem in heat set web offset, flexographic
and screen-printing. In the interest of not just environmental
improvement, but also health and safety, it is important
to look for substitutes (e.g. water-based inks for screen-printing)
or at the least solvent recovery (e.g. by condensing filtration,
thermal or catalytic incineration). |
| |
| •
Waste Minimisation |
| |
Reducing
the amount of waste generated can not only save money,
but will also cut air, waste and ground pollution. Tighter
controls over the use of chemicals will also bring health
and safety benefits.
We suggest you adopt some or all of the following measures: |
| - |
assess the feasibility of
fixer and water recycling as well as silver recovery |
| - |
re-examine working practices
in the print room to get maximum mileage out of
printing chemicals (e.g. process solutions) |
| - |
reduce or eliminate the amount
of packaging |
| - |
research the collection and
disposal systems to maximise the recycling options |
| - |
use a smaller size paper,
if available, to reduce paper waste |
| - |
establish who the nearest
waste paper merchant is. Many now supply and collect
wire cages for off-cuts |
| - |
avoid lamination
and varnishing where unnecessary - if their application
is unavoidable, use materials that are water soluble |
|
| |
| •
Practical Hints |
| |
| Consider
drawing up an environmental policy: |
| - |
contact The Environment
Council (020 7836 2626) or Wastewatch (020 7089
2100) |
| - |
get advice from BPIF (0870
240 4085) on environmental standards |
|
| |
| •
Further Contacts |
| |
|
| |
Environmental Links: |
| |
Intercolor (01708 890777),
Coates Lorrileux (01689 894000), CK Litho Ltd (01227
273160), Litho Supplies (01925 411417) |
| |
Recovery of Chemicals: |
| |
Dupont (01438 734317), IGP
(01245 323555) |
| |
Chemical Waste: |
| |
Global Envirotec Services
(0121 233 2413 or 01227 266677), Agfa (020 8231
4929) |
|
| |
| |
 |
 |
| |
