Recycling paper in China saves trees
Wastepaper from around the world makes its way to China, where 19.6 million metric tons (t) were turned into recycled paper and paperboard products in 2006. During the past decade, China's wastepaper imports for recycling grew substantially, according to a new report [PDF size: 2.3 MB] from Forest Trends, a nonprofit organization that promotes sustainable forestry practices.
That trend "probably saved 54 million t of wood from being harvested for pulp," said Brian Stafford, lead author of Environmental Aspects of China's Papermaking Fiber Supply, released July 13. However, China's higher-quality paper products require "virgin fiber", often logged illegally from forests in Indonesia and eastern Russia. About two-thirds of China's more than 7 million t of high-grade printer paper in 2005 could be considered sustainable.
