Green it up with FSC-certified paper!

Whether printing business cards, auction catalogs, or promotional materials, many printers offer paper that is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. Obviously, using 100% recycled paper is best, but that is not always an option, and FSC-certified paper is a very good, and very green, way to go. Paper that is certified by the FSC has been manufactured utilizing trees that were grown using responsible and sustainable methods. Additionally, the FSC-certified paper your printer uses can be tracked back to the source, so that you can know where your paper comes from! For more information, visit the Forest Stewardship Council. (http://www.fscus.org/faqs/what_is_certification.php)

We noted in our current column that Andrew’s employer, Garth’s Auctions, not only uses FSC-certified paper, but also moved to a slightly smaller catalog format that allows them to use considerably less paper. Andrew just learned that Garth’s has taken another small step by moving to paper that is 50% recycled (25% post-consumer content). This “small” step will, over the course of a year, save:

238 trees

56,000,000 BTUs of engery

7,400 pounds of CO2 emissions

38,000 gallons of water

3,605 pounds of solid waste

We don’t put this out there to brag about one of the companies who helps us pay our mortgage, but merely to show that it really isn’t that hard to make a difference. Something as simple as choosing paper can really help the antiques industry “walk the walk” when it comes to being green!