4 Sustainable Printing Alternatives That You Can Use

4 Sustainable Printing Alternatives

Sustainable development is very important due to the rising population and finite resources. According to a study conducted by the United Nations project, there will be more than 10 billion people living on Earth by the year 2100. As a result, there are not enough resources to supply our demand, thus sustainable resources must be considered.

It is no secret that the production of paper negatively impacts the environment due to the waste of printed materials ending up in landfills, the use of limited resources like water, trees and non-renewable resources and the increase of air pollution due to the manufacturing of the paper. However, printing does not have to be so detrimental to the environment.

Here are four sustainable printing alternatives that you can implement into your office to be more eco-friendly.

1. Recycled Paper.

Most of us have been taught that recycled paper does not impact the environment. However, recycled paper still uses virgin fibres from new trees in order to maintain the renewable cycle. This is due to the fact that these fibres can only be used several times, then need to be replaced. In order to be more eco-friendly, research if the paper you use is from sustainably-managed forests.

2. Digital Printing.

Digital Printing is perfect for small amounts of printing. It doesn't need a printing plate like conventional printing methods as digital printing prints onto the media substrates.

3. LED UV Printing.

Traditional ways of printing uses solvent inks that release volatile organic compounds (VOC) into the atmosphere when drying. Using ultraviolet light to print dries the ink instantly with less evaporation of additives and also eliminating the use of heat. It also reduces the power consumption and carbon dioxide emissions to due the immediate on/off functionality.

4. Carbon Balanced Print.

The role of the print supplier is to measure the carbon dioxide emissions during the manufacturing of carbon balanced paper. They then would implement conservation projects like using electric cars or automatic lighting in order to balance out the unavoidable carbon that was released. As a result, reducing the carbon footprint and negative impact on the environment.