Paper grows trees...quite fast!Submitted by: Phil Riebel 03/10/2017


In North America, it takes less than 2 seconds to grow the fiber needed for a standard #10 envelope (on 100 acres of managed forests).




For many years, International Paper's "Go Paper. Grow Trees." campaign and "Print Grows Trees" operated by the Printing & Graphics Association MidAtlantic have been promoting the vital link between paper / print and the long-term retention of privately-owned (including family-owned) forest lands.  In short, a strong market for pulp, paper, lumber and other forest products, does grow trees. 
In North America we grow many more trees than we harvest.  Forest area in the U.S. increased by 5,800 NFL football fields per day between 2007 and 2012, or a total of 14 million acres.[ii]  In Canada, the forest cover has remained stable over the last two decades and, in recent years, Canada’s actual harvest has been 44% of annual growth.[iii]
To illustrate the powerful renewable features of well managed North American forests, we calculated how much time it takes to grow some well-known paper products: a standard #10 envelope and a ream of office copy paper (500 sheets).  The results may surprise you!
Our calculation methods
It is possible to estimate the time needed to grow wood fiber for certain paper products on a given forest area.  The results depend on which tree species are used to make these paper products and the age and growing conditions of the trees.  Soil fertility and moisture, drainage conditions and the number of trees per acre all affect tree growth rate. Tree species also vary widely in their wood density: a higher density wood will produce more fiber for the same weight than a low density wood.
The necessary data and fiber growth rate calculations were obtained from the literature for nine tree species used in pulp and paper production and occurring under different growing conditions in the U.S. and Canada.  The objective of this exercise was to develop estimates of the time it takes to grow the wood fiber necessary for the given paper products. 
Click here to see our detailed data table.
Results
The time required to grow the fiber needed for a #10 envelope is 0.3 to 1.9 seconds per 100 acres of managed North American forest.
The time required to grow the fiber needed for a ream of 500-sheet office paper is 0.3 to 2.2 hours per 100 acres of managed North American forest.
The fastest growth rates were for Loblolly Pine and Hybrid Aspen, and the slowest for Black Spruce, with climate and temperature playing a large role in growth rates. 
Given the above, a forest land owner or tree farmer who has 100 acres of commercial pulpwood could produce enough wood fiber for the following products, with just the new tree growth achieved in 1 year:

• 15.8 million #10 envelopes, or
• 4,000 reams of copy paper (500 sheets each)

A market for paper products also benefits local communities given that a portion of the income from wood sales is re-injected in local businesses and services.
Conclusion
Given the progress of sustainable forestry in North America, environmental claims related to forest products such as paper must consider the renewability and growth of well managed forests.  In other words, claims such as “go paperless – go green” or “save trees” mislead consumers into believing that paper is a cause of deforestation (permanent forest loss) when it clearly is not.  Well managed forests provide a multitude of environmental, social and economic benefits to thousands of North American communities.  They are also key to helping mitigate climate change due to carbon sequestration, and promoting biodiversity compared to other land uses.
Forest products such as paper can support a vibrant and renewable forest cycle that can be sustainably managed for the long-term.[i]
For more on these features of paper, see our Two Sides Fact sheets or our Myths and Facts series.

​Which home remedy is a deodorizer, exfoliator, bug repellant, wood stain, hair gloss, compost, and fertilizer? 

COFFEE GROUNDS! 
 
Simply Shellie tells us how we can use Unused Coffee Grounds

1. Deodorizer – Use coffee in the back of the fridge for odor control. Place clean, unused coffee grounds in an open bowl or cup at the back of the refrigerator to eliminate foul smells. They can be used in the freezer, as well. You can even make closet sachets with coffee. Take cheesecloth or other breathable materials and wrap a small amount of coffee grounds and hang in the back of the closet. Cheesecloth wrapped coffee can also do wonders in the bottom of your diaper pail.

2. Use as an exfoliator - Add clean coffee grounds to a body wash. Massage into skin and rinse. It’s a great remover of dry skin. You can also use them for a great facial. Mix a few tablespoons of grounds with enough water to make a paste. Pat it on skin and let stand for a few minutes and then massage in circles. Rinse thoroughly.

3. A natural bug repellant – Several insects including ants are sensitive to strong smells. Sprinkle fresh grounds around plant beds or any other areas where you would like to keep out pests.

4. Deter Animals – It is also a good way to discourage cats from using your yard as a litter box. Take the grounds and mix with the rind of a citrus fruit to create a pungent odor that turns the local kitties away.

5. Touch up furniture scratches - No need to buy an expensive Minwax pen when you have coffee. Make a paste with a little bit of instant coffee and hot water. Rub it into the scratch. Repeat if necessary until the scratch matches the surrounding wood.

Here’s how to use Used Coffee Grounds

6. Fight Cellulite – Warmed, used grounds mixed with coconut oil are said to help fight cellulite. If Halle Berry does it, so can you! The caffeine is the active ingredient. Rub it into skin in massaging circles. If it doesn’t stop the cellulite, you should at least have soft skin after.

7. Lustrous Hair – Want shiny hair? Coffee grounds have long been known for a great hair gloss. After shampooing, rub warm grounds into hair. Let stand until cool and then rinse. If you have dark hair, this can give a color boost. If you have very light hair, be careful. Keep the coffee weak and don’t leave the rinse in too long. It can stain hair.

8. Composting – The rich minerals left behind in the grounds helps the degradation process. Mix with lye to further the breakdown and worms really like the grounds so it is a multi-faceted support to composting.

9. Fertilizer – Whether you compost or not, those same minerals including nitrogen and potassium make a great fertilizer and enrich the soil. This also works with indoor plants.

10. Household scrub – Use coffee grounds to cleans pans or baked on grime on a stove top. They are mildly abrasive and great for cleaning grime. Mix in with your current creamy cleaner or use on their own.

Paper is the most recycled material in the U.S. today. And while recovery rates remain high, so too do misconceptions around what you can and cannot put into the recycling bin. The good news? The majority of municipalities are well equipped to handle just about anything. So the next time you pause before hitting the “print” button, or select electronic statements thinking you’re doing the environment a favor, consider that paper and packaging aren’t wasteful when recycled properly.

Embrace the bin; you can recycle more than you think.

What goes into the bin:

·       White and colored paper from home, school or the office. Includes writing paper, copy paper, office folders, notebooks, stationary, etc.

·       Cereal and dry food boxes, shoe boxes, laundry detergent boxes, etc.

·       All mail and envelopes (including those with windows), postcards, greeting cards, coupon packets, etc.

·       Boxes used for over-the-counter medicine, cosmetics or perfume; bakery or candy boxes; takeout food containers or beverage cups; pizza and frozen food boxes

·       Corrugated cardboard boxes used for packaging or shipping

·       Paper shopping bags from retail stores, grocery stores and restaurants

·       Magazines and catalogs with glossy paper (no need to remove staples; paper mills today can handle that)

·       Newspaper and newspaper inserts

·       Juice, milk and aseptic cartons

·       Telephone directories (just remove any plastic bags and magnets first)

·       Hardcover or softcover books, wrapping paper (including the cardboard tube), old business cards, etc.

Remember:

1.    Every municipality is different. For example, cities across the country have varying guidelines to recycle pizza boxes. In addition to removing non-paper inserts or additional packaging (adhesive coupons, etc.) as well as any food residue, check your local recycling rules to see what other guidelines are in place.

2.    Quality does matter. Try to remove all food residues and liquids from paper items before putting them in the bin. Make sure the item is clean and dry. Crumpled paper is still quality paper and goes into the recycling bin!

3.    Books typically contain adhesives in their binding. Look online to find programs in your area that will accept old books and recycle them. Some municipalities may require that you remove the spines of hardcover books prior to recycling.

Content sourced from:

AF&PA: Paper Recycles Study (Recycling Resources), 2013