Bonjour

1
Bonjour
mesdames
et monsieurs!

• Aujourdhui
• nous vous
• présentons

2
The GSA and recycled paper

• Antoine Tremblay.
• Department of Linguistics

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Is using recycled paper worst than using virgin
fibre paper?

• Recycled paper has greater dependency on fossil
  fuels.
• Recycling must be encouraged along side clean
  energy production from renewable sources such as
  solar and wind energy.
• Nonetheless, producing recycled paper reduces
  total energy consumption by 28-70.
• Overall, studies suggest that for pollutants, the
  environmental burden is less if paper is recycled.

Info taken from http//www.foe.co.uk/resource/brie
fings/paper_recycling.html
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More facts on recycled paper

• Paper recycling leads to using less wood for pulp
  and paper production.
• Less intensive forest management and take the
  pressure off exploitation of old growth forests,
  vitally important for their biodiversity.
• The only area in which recycled paper creates
  more disposal materials is in the greater amount
  of sludge.
• BUT, not so bad after all these pollutants would
  have been scattered throughout landfills or
  concentrated in incinerator emissions or ash.

Info taken from http//www.foe.co.uk/resource/brie
fings/paper_recycling.html
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More on recycled paper

• Levels of heavy metals in recycling sludge are
  thought to have declined in line with a reduction
  in their use in inks and pigments.
• Recycling mill sludge becomes an environmentally
  preferable way of handling potentially toxic
  materials.
• The sludge of many recycling mills tests
  non-toxic.
• Sludge that tests hazardous can be disposed of by
  an environmentally controlled method.
• Recycling and using recycled materials solves
  (part of) the community disposal problem.

Info taken from http//www.conservatree.org/paper/
PaperTypes/RecyMyths.shtml
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In addition

• My brother and I worked in the logging industry.
• We have a pretty good idea of the amount of
  energy spent and the magnitude of the disturbance
  to the environment necessary to
• get to the trees,
• cut them,
• and hall them to the mills.
• Let me say, it is enourmous!!!
• My father was an engineer at a paper mill, so I
  have an idea of how paper is made.
• Though to be honest, I havent worked in the
  recycled paper industry.
• THE POINT IS even if recycling paper would be
  worse, if you factor in getting the wood, overall
  recycling paper just has to be better.

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Last but not least..

• About 300,000 tons of recycled pulp gets thrown
  away because the demand for recycled paper is not
  high enough.
• http//www.rso.cornell.edu/snrc/documents/OfficeVi
  sitManual.doc

Thanks to Sue-Ann Mok, from cell biology, for
the links.
Info taken from http//www.rso.cornell.edu/snrc/do
cuments/OfficeVisitManual.doc
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Lets be part of the solution
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Other universities already are using recycled
paper

• Other universities have switched to paper made
  from 100 post-consumer fibre processed
  chlorine-free
• Princeton university
• As of spring 2004, the Provost of Princeton
  University now requires that all academic
  departments order 100 post-consumer waste (pcw)
  paper for their standard office needs.
• University of Vermont
• Humboldt State
• College of the Atlantic
• and more (see Campus Sustainability Coalition
  pamphlet)

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They use Boise Aspen 100 recycled paper

• Boise Aspen 100 recycled paper
• 100 post-consumer waste recycled paper
• Processed chlorine-free
• Costs 4.95 per pack
• GSA consumes 400 packs per year
• Total 1,980 per year.
• Virgin fiber paper currently used
• 3.22 per pack
• GSA consumes 400 packs per year
• Total 1,288/year.
• That is, Boise Aspen 100 recycled paper costs
  692 more per year ( 1.73 more per pack).

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We would also use 100 recycled folders and
hanging folders

• 90 post-consumer fibres, 10 pre-consumner
  fibres
• The GSA buys very few folders and hanging folders
• They reuse old ones (which is better than
  recycling)

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The Linguistics department

• The Linguistics department currently switched
  from paper containing 30 recycled fibre to Boise
  Aspen 100 100 post-consumer recycled paper ( 32
  packs)
• We are also using 100 recycled folders and
  hanging folders

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Can the GSA make the switch?

• Budget Advisory Committee meeting did not take
  place last month
• Quorum was not met. 
• BUT they have discussed the issue and their
  suggestion is to put forward the proposal
• Council has ultimate decision-making power of the
  budget, and so, could choose to approve the
  additional expenses.

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In sum

• Wed be making a substantial and significant
  difference in terms the Us environmental impact
• Lets invest 692/year in our environment, our
  future
• U of As GSA would be cutting edge with regards
  to environmental issues
• (isnt this what the U wants?)

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The motions

• I thus propose we pass the following motions
• R20070416.4
• R20070416.5
• R20070416.6

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• Merci beaucoup
• pour votre temps et votre patience
• Vous voulez plus dinfo?
• antoinet_at_ualberta.ca
• www.ualberta.ca/antoinet/

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Future plans

• Get the university as a whole to completely
  switch to Boise Aspen 100 recycled paper
• Then get the university (including the GSA) to
  get EPCOR to switch to Boise Aspen 100 recycled
  paper
• Hydro Quebec is doing it
• It is switching to using exclusively non-bleached
  100 post-consumer waste recycled paper ( 650
  tons)
• That is, it saves 11,000 trees and 20 million
  liters of water (from Greenpeace newsletter, Fall
  2006, volume 14, issue 3)