While certification frameworks are well established for sustainably sourced and recycled paper, making sustainable choices about other materials used in the production of books can be more complex.
Inks, glues, and the finishes and laminates used on covers are generally made from pollutant and non-renewable materials.
Where alternative materials are not widely available, the selection of environmentally friendly materials may depend on individual publishers’ willingness to incur additional costs.
By establishing collective industry sustainability standards and practices, printers would be encouraged to invest in preferred materials and systems resulting in more cost effective pricing for publishers.
Ink
The standard variety of ink used for many printed materials has traditionally been solvent-based ink. Although recyclable under controlled conditions, it contains pigments that are not easily biodegradable as well as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) which are released as toxic fumes which carry environmental and health risks.
It is, however, now standard practice for printers (overseas and in Australia) to use REACH-compliant inks (following the EU’s Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals framework) and azo-free dyes, which are nontoxic and more eco-friendly.
Alternatives
- Water-based inks generally do not contain petroleum-based solvents and therefore do not contain VOCs. Some water-based inks do also contain solvents though. These inks are also recyclable under controlled conditions.
- Oil-based inks spread more efficiently than solvent-based inks, meaning less of them is required for printing (although some also contain solvents). Inks using soybean oil or linseed oils are more environmentally friendly than petroleum-based oil and are now far more common in offset printing. These inks are recyclable under controlled conditions.
- UV or Electronic Beam inks can be energy-intensive and technically complex. These inks do not, however, contain VOCs. They are recyclable under controlled conditions.
The ideal alternative is vegetable-based, low-VOC ink.
(source: Book Chain Project Design guide)
For more information see the 2013 EUPIA report, ‘Environmental Impact of Printing Inks’.
Adhesives
The most common type of adhesive used in binding is Polyurethane reactive adhesives, known as PUR glues or hot-melt. These contain petroleum-based polymers and are very difficult to recycle, so must be disposed of by a licenced disposal facility.
Solvent-based adhesives contain VOCs, which contribute to air pollution and global heating. They are extremely toxic and must be disposed of by a licensed disposal facility.
Animal-based adhesives are not generally a biological hazard, but the production of them produces large quantities of waste water that has to then go through a treatment process. They are biodegradable and easy to re-pulp.
Water-based adhesives are easy to remove and recycle; paper bound with this type of adhesive can be re-pulped without further treatment. These tend to be used more in packaging as the adhesive is not as strong as PUR glues, making them less successful for holding books together.
(source: Book Chain Project Design guide)
Cover lamination
Standard gloss or matt cover laminations for both paperback and hardback books are made of plastic. Publishers could explore with printers the availability of lamination made from recycled plastic.
Australian and offshore printers offer machine varnish as an alternative cover finish. It is environmentally friendly and comparable in cost to simple plastic lamination, but not as robust, and cannot be used with cover embellishments.
Cover embellishments
Hot-foil stamping and cold foiling, used to give book covers metallic finishes, are both highly energy-intensive processes. A cheaper and more eco-friendly alternative is to print covers with metallic inks, which only include flecks of metals; this means one less stage in the production process.
Spot varnish is also a more affordable and green option than embossing and debossing, which both require plates and a stamping process. Spot varnish gains its reflective quality from varnish being exposed to UV light and ‘cured’.