We've known for some time now that by-products of the agricultural wheat industry have been well suited to paper production. And certainly the idea of making a newspaper out of chaff does not seem to far fetched to me. But now it seems that the technology being used in North America is advanced enough to make a magazine.
This new report is very exciting for those in the recycling business. As a by-product wheat chaff in the UK is being landfilled.
What a massive opportunity this is for the publishing industries of the Western world to embrace.
I say in the West, because in China they have been doing this for years. Farmers from all over China have been able to supply their local paper mill with rice farming by-products and thereby creating a much needed income stream from their own waste; though this agreement is now under threat because of an influx of large European style paper mills from Finland that have no use for agricultural by-products.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Walkabout II is falling together
Nice to see the next Walkabout is getting some coverage in the Telegraph. Shane Richmond takes time to point out that Project Freesheet has managed to make an "interesting point". Not ours I'm afraid but Mr Hughes' from The Ecologist does make quite a few other interesting points in his article.
So, for those that are interested I thought I'd post here a rough idea of how things are going to pan out on the 27th for The Big 10,000....(with thanks to Ebullient Cohort Fewins)
We are set to have at least 70 volunteers out there on the streets picking up papers across London. There are at least 12 groups starting from the 'burbs and ending up at various central locations around town.
All the newspapers will be dumped at City Hall at 8pm for a photo opportunity in order to illustrate to those in power the scale of the problem, before being taken to the newspaper house project in Hackney. This is a jolly impressive project - see here for more info. You’re welcome to go along the following evening and make your own ‘brick’ (I have - it’s great fun).
Project Freesheet have a van for the night, which will be going around the various groups picking up the papers collected so don’t worry about carrying a heavy load.
The best places to find newspapers are by tube station entrances and bus stops – you can’t just take them out of the hands of the vendors. We need to play by the rules here. Remember we are collecting litter – so bins also count.
Finally – we thought that we could do with a suitable uniform for the walkabout but sadly Vivienne Westwood was busy that night, so instead we’ve come up with some very funky hat designs to make out of the freesheets you collect. Or a chap with a ‘tasche has this.
Don’t forget to bring along a map / sundial / GPS equipment but more especially your camera so that you can take pics and upload them to the site. We will have bags in which to carry the papers you collect. That’s all you need. Oh and perhaps a big fat marker pen with which to decorate your hat.
Happy Pickings!
So, for those that are interested I thought I'd post here a rough idea of how things are going to pan out on the 27th for The Big 10,000....(with thanks to Ebullient Cohort Fewins)
We are set to have at least 70 volunteers out there on the streets picking up papers across London. There are at least 12 groups starting from the 'burbs and ending up at various central locations around town.
All the newspapers will be dumped at City Hall at 8pm for a photo opportunity in order to illustrate to those in power the scale of the problem, before being taken to the newspaper house project in Hackney. This is a jolly impressive project - see here for more info. You’re welcome to go along the following evening and make your own ‘brick’ (I have - it’s great fun).
Project Freesheet have a van for the night, which will be going around the various groups picking up the papers collected so don’t worry about carrying a heavy load.
The best places to find newspapers are by tube station entrances and bus stops – you can’t just take them out of the hands of the vendors. We need to play by the rules here. Remember we are collecting litter – so bins also count.
Finally – we thought that we could do with a suitable uniform for the walkabout but sadly Vivienne Westwood was busy that night, so instead we’ve come up with some very funky hat designs to make out of the freesheets you collect. Or a chap with a ‘tasche has this.
Don’t forget to bring along a map / sundial / GPS equipment but more especially your camera so that you can take pics and upload them to the site. We will have bags in which to carry the papers you collect. That’s all you need. Oh and perhaps a big fat marker pen with which to decorate your hat.
Happy Pickings!
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Increasing demand boosts Asian recovered paper prices
This summary of a recent increase in the price was reclaimed paper was taken from Risiinfo.com
Prices for recovered paper have climbed in China and Southeast Asia.
US old newspapers (ONP) have climbed $15/tonne, European ONP by $10/tonne and Japanese ONP by $5-10/tonne.
US old corrugated containers (OCC) have risen $20/tonne and European OCC has climbed $20-25/tonne and Japanese OCC by $15/tonne.
These value hikes have pulled up prices for mixed paper, which has climbed $10/tonne. Chinese mills are buying more mixed paper than usual and sorting out what they need. Prices for US pulp substitutes climbed by $5/tonne in late December, reflecting increasing global pulp prices.
Meanwhile the Japanese government has been pushing renewable energy policies that have resulted in the installation of more than 100,000 residential solar power systems since 2004, as well as a projection of 5 GW of solar generation capacity by 2010. Japan even plans to launch a solar satellite by 2040, which will deliver energy to the earth via low-intensity microwaves. The satellite will absorb the sun’s energy 24 hours a day, unobstructed by clouds, and generate one million kilowatts per second – equal to the output of a nuclear power plant.
Japan leads the world in solar power technology and not only produces half the total solar cells made in the world, but it also exports 30% of these cells, with expected demand for 20% increases per year.
Both of these examples highlight positive and successful implementation of new and existing technologies from the renewable sector. It is claimed that the renewable sector alone cannot meet the energy requirements of the 21st Century. But you have to wonder about that don't you?
Whilst Gordon Brown umms and arrs over the nuclear decision for the next 5 years, the renewable sector will continue to go from strength to strength. But how much quicker could this growth be though with the full support of the UK goverment?
Prices for recovered paper have climbed in China and Southeast Asia.
US old newspapers (ONP) have climbed $15/tonne, European ONP by $10/tonne and Japanese ONP by $5-10/tonne.
US old corrugated containers (OCC) have risen $20/tonne and European OCC has climbed $20-25/tonne and Japanese OCC by $15/tonne.
These value hikes have pulled up prices for mixed paper, which has climbed $10/tonne. Chinese mills are buying more mixed paper than usual and sorting out what they need. Prices for US pulp substitutes climbed by $5/tonne in late December, reflecting increasing global pulp prices.
Meanwhile the Japanese government has been pushing renewable energy policies that have resulted in the installation of more than 100,000 residential solar power systems since 2004, as well as a projection of 5 GW of solar generation capacity by 2010. Japan even plans to launch a solar satellite by 2040, which will deliver energy to the earth via low-intensity microwaves. The satellite will absorb the sun’s energy 24 hours a day, unobstructed by clouds, and generate one million kilowatts per second – equal to the output of a nuclear power plant.
Japan leads the world in solar power technology and not only produces half the total solar cells made in the world, but it also exports 30% of these cells, with expected demand for 20% increases per year.
Both of these examples highlight positive and successful implementation of new and existing technologies from the renewable sector. It is claimed that the renewable sector alone cannot meet the energy requirements of the 21st Century. But you have to wonder about that don't you?
Whilst Gordon Brown umms and arrs over the nuclear decision for the next 5 years, the renewable sector will continue to go from strength to strength. But how much quicker could this growth be though with the full support of the UK goverment?
Thursday, December 6, 2007
2007 - Year of the Freesheet?
In a long discussion with Nick Hallett (distribution manager of the Londonpaper) on tuesday, the message that free newspapers are here to stay was reaffirmed. Nick went to great lengths to tell me about all the waste and recycling initiatives that the Londonpaper was involved with. They have some interesting plans in the pipeline, some of which are quite encouraging.
And over the past few months we have seen further evidence that the free publication model continues to grow in popularity. Piet Baker, in his newsletter, recently reported that there are now 53 countries producing 41.8 million copies of 229 different titles every day. That means circulation of free newspapers around the world has nearly doubled in just two years.
In London, Metro will soon be overtaking one of the oldest tabloids, the Daily Mirror, in terms of circulation; and with Shortlist (aimed at men 'with more than one thing on their mind') hoping to establish itself as the first general interest free weekly magazine, the potential for new rival publications has never been greater. Free publications will enjoy an increasing share of the advertising revenue pie for years to come it seems.
But with all this new enterprise, can we expect to see relative increases in the capacity of the recycling infrastructure to reasonably reflect the free publishing industries desires and achievements? No, is the short answer. New publications require large amounts of money and resources to start up (with the potential of advertising revenues to keep the project moving forward), but the present reliance and pressures on public money to sponsor the increasing demand for free literature and its corresponding waste/recycling challenges, means our ability to act responsibly is becoming increasingly impossible.
Industry is going to have to commit a lot more of its 'bottom line' towards investment and sponsorship of 'green' priorities if we are to really get to grips with the millions of tons of waste we send to landfill every day.
Companies considering new routes to market therefore, should be doing so with environmental levies and taxation uppermost on their balance sheets. This is the only way we can expect to run an economy responsibly. Every new enterprise should be forced to pay realistic amounts of income towards the direct impact it has on the street cleaning services, the recycling infrastructure and the local community at large.
And over the past few months we have seen further evidence that the free publication model continues to grow in popularity. Piet Baker, in his newsletter, recently reported that there are now 53 countries producing 41.8 million copies of 229 different titles every day. That means circulation of free newspapers around the world has nearly doubled in just two years.
In London, Metro will soon be overtaking one of the oldest tabloids, the Daily Mirror, in terms of circulation; and with Shortlist (aimed at men 'with more than one thing on their mind') hoping to establish itself as the first general interest free weekly magazine, the potential for new rival publications has never been greater. Free publications will enjoy an increasing share of the advertising revenue pie for years to come it seems.
But with all this new enterprise, can we expect to see relative increases in the capacity of the recycling infrastructure to reasonably reflect the free publishing industries desires and achievements? No, is the short answer. New publications require large amounts of money and resources to start up (with the potential of advertising revenues to keep the project moving forward), but the present reliance and pressures on public money to sponsor the increasing demand for free literature and its corresponding waste/recycling challenges, means our ability to act responsibly is becoming increasingly impossible.
Industry is going to have to commit a lot more of its 'bottom line' towards investment and sponsorship of 'green' priorities if we are to really get to grips with the millions of tons of waste we send to landfill every day.
Companies considering new routes to market therefore, should be doing so with environmental levies and taxation uppermost on their balance sheets. This is the only way we can expect to run an economy responsibly. Every new enterprise should be forced to pay realistic amounts of income towards the direct impact it has on the street cleaning services, the recycling infrastructure and the local community at large.
Monday, November 26, 2007
Observations
Giveaways are booming, and some think it is only a matter of time before a Fleet Street title follows them, reports James Robinson in the Observer (25.11.07)
In this article there are some interesting conclusions and observations from some of the key players involved in the London freesheet battle. One of which is from Steve Auckland, MD at Metro -
'People weren't sitting on tubes or trains reading papers before Metro came along. A few of them might have been reading a book, but most of them were staring into space.'
One might make the same conclusion when chronicling the impact of the iPod. But to say that very few people were listening to music on the tube before the iPod came along would be inaccurate. Does Mr Auckland truly believe that before the Metro, no-one read books, magazines, work reports, newspapers or any other type of literature on public transport? Perhaps this was a tongue in cheek comment, but for me, Mr Auckland is attempting to make us believe and buy into the one thing that Apple, Associated Newspapers et al work very hard for on a daily basis. That the products they tout are items essential to our daily existence. That we must have these items in our lives to make our lives feel more complete.
In a sense, iPod's and Free newspapers are bought to market in quite similar ways. Both are backed up by big budget marketing campaigns, they are both very visible on the streets, and they are both aimed at 20-30 somethings.
I for one, whilst being a fan of the iPod did not buy one for 2 years based on the fact that I felt I didn't need one at that stage. Eventually I succumbed. This was perhaps because the cleverly designed and ubiquitous poster campaigns which were designed to be completely unavoidable and irresistable eventually got through to me.
The same is true of the free newspapers. We will all eventually grow to love one of the many free publications that will be made available to us I suppose, but that does not escape the fact that free literature publishers must be made to contribute far more to the clean up bill.
Through their seemingly inexhaustable availability the free papers are indeed very successful. But that doesn't make the producers of them any less responsible for paying towards more of the clear up costs.
We at Project Freesheet shall be striving to do just that.
In this article there are some interesting conclusions and observations from some of the key players involved in the London freesheet battle. One of which is from Steve Auckland, MD at Metro -
'People weren't sitting on tubes or trains reading papers before Metro came along. A few of them might have been reading a book, but most of them were staring into space.'
One might make the same conclusion when chronicling the impact of the iPod. But to say that very few people were listening to music on the tube before the iPod came along would be inaccurate. Does Mr Auckland truly believe that before the Metro, no-one read books, magazines, work reports, newspapers or any other type of literature on public transport? Perhaps this was a tongue in cheek comment, but for me, Mr Auckland is attempting to make us believe and buy into the one thing that Apple, Associated Newspapers et al work very hard for on a daily basis. That the products they tout are items essential to our daily existence. That we must have these items in our lives to make our lives feel more complete.
In a sense, iPod's and Free newspapers are bought to market in quite similar ways. Both are backed up by big budget marketing campaigns, they are both very visible on the streets, and they are both aimed at 20-30 somethings.
I for one, whilst being a fan of the iPod did not buy one for 2 years based on the fact that I felt I didn't need one at that stage. Eventually I succumbed. This was perhaps because the cleverly designed and ubiquitous poster campaigns which were designed to be completely unavoidable and irresistable eventually got through to me.
The same is true of the free newspapers. We will all eventually grow to love one of the many free publications that will be made available to us I suppose, but that does not escape the fact that free literature publishers must be made to contribute far more to the clean up bill.
Through their seemingly inexhaustable availability the free papers are indeed very successful. But that doesn't make the producers of them any less responsible for paying towards more of the clear up costs.
We at Project Freesheet shall be striving to do just that.
Monday, October 29, 2007
Industrialised Tree Plantations
I had an interesting meeting with Steve Auckland, Don Gray and Karen Wall from Associated Newspapers last week. They were interested to hear of Project Freesheets' observations that the street vendors (or merchandisers) were not carrying out their clearing up responsibilities to anything like an acceptable standard. And as AN seem to value the street vendors greatly, the idea of a recycling incentive scheme amongst their street vendors was given some thought.
The efforts being made by AN appear to be genuine (they are hoping to make some announcements in the not too distant future), but I still have this nagging thought - Can a product made from trees with a designed life span of twenty minutes ever be produced in an environmentally responsible manner?
A life cycle assessment of a free newspaper has not been carried out yet, and would cost a lot of money to do, but until tree based paper pulp is taken out of the supply chain, can a free newspaper made from trees ever hope to be labeled environmentally responsibe? This quote is taken from a report entitled "Banks, Pulp and People - A Primer on Upcoming International Pulp Projects" recently published on Pulpmillwatch.org
"Pulp mills and the industrial tree plantations that feed them have become increasingly controversial. In country after country, local people and environmental organisations are protesting against the impacts of plantations. The vast areas of mono-cultures required to feed modern pulp mills have severe impacts on biodiversity, water, land rights and livelihoods. And the mills themselves are among the most polluting of industrial facilities. Communities around the world have seen their rivers, fisheries and drinking water ruined. Protests against pulp mills are ongoing in Thailand, Indonesia, Brazil, Chile and Uruguay, to mention just a few of the countries involved."
And according to PulpMillWatch.org, over the next 5 years the pulp industry is planning to increase production capacity by more than 25 million tonnes.........
The efforts being made by AN appear to be genuine (they are hoping to make some announcements in the not too distant future), but I still have this nagging thought - Can a product made from trees with a designed life span of twenty minutes ever be produced in an environmentally responsible manner?
A life cycle assessment of a free newspaper has not been carried out yet, and would cost a lot of money to do, but until tree based paper pulp is taken out of the supply chain, can a free newspaper made from trees ever hope to be labeled environmentally responsibe? This quote is taken from a report entitled "Banks, Pulp and People - A Primer on Upcoming International Pulp Projects" recently published on Pulpmillwatch.org
"Pulp mills and the industrial tree plantations that feed them have become increasingly controversial. In country after country, local people and environmental organisations are protesting against the impacts of plantations. The vast areas of mono-cultures required to feed modern pulp mills have severe impacts on biodiversity, water, land rights and livelihoods. And the mills themselves are among the most polluting of industrial facilities. Communities around the world have seen their rivers, fisheries and drinking water ruined. Protests against pulp mills are ongoing in Thailand, Indonesia, Brazil, Chile and Uruguay, to mention just a few of the countries involved."
And according to PulpMillWatch.org, over the next 5 years the pulp industry is planning to increase production capacity by more than 25 million tonnes.........
Monday, October 8, 2007
free-daily.com: How not to distribute a free daily newspaper
free-daily.com: How not to distribute a free daily newspaper
Great piece Clyde! Couldn't have put it better myself
Great piece Clyde! Couldn't have put it better myself
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