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Ecolabelling of printed matter - part I 3 Comparison with priorities in the Paper Profile Manual
An environmental product declaration concept has been agreed upon between a number of Nordic paper producing companies. The concept is described on www.paperprofile.com. The concept is not a full ISO 14020, type III eco-labelling system, as there is no third party control defined – only recommended informally[1]. The declaration is rather a marketing format, creating a uniform platform for communication of environmental parameters (ISO 14020: a self-declaration, type II claim, where the producer holds the full responsibility for the quality and correctness of the declaration and supporting documentation, according to general marketing law). To eco-labelling experts, this is evident from the Manual, because there is no reference in the Paper Profile Manual to the ISO 14020 or ISO TR 14025, but for the average user, this is not clear, because the term “declaration” is used widely. In the following, the environmental parameters covered by the Paper Profile, are compared to the results of the LCA study described in Part II of this report. 3.1 Parameters included in the Paper ProfileAll parameters included in the Paper Profile Manual are based on a functional unit of one tonne of paper product. Parameters are divided into four categories: emissions from production to water, air, deposits, and energy consumption. Thus, excluding timber production (forestry) and the use and disposal phases, there is no attempt in the Paper Profile concept to cover the entire life cycle of paper products. The concept is rather a pulp and paper production sites benchmarking system. The parameters are: Emissions to water:
Emissions to air:
Deposits:
Energy consumption:
Apart from the listed environmental parameters, the Paper Profile Manual gives space for:
3.2 Comparison to findings in Part II and other LCA studiesAll LCA based studies referred to in this project conclude that paper production (cradle to gate) is one of the most significant contributors to potential environmental impact in the life cycle of printed matter, the main cause being related to energy consumption. This issue is covered in the Paper Profile Manual with one parameter, which covers “purchased electricity consumption”, which is defined as kWh tapped from the grid. If an integrated power production is part of the mill, emissions from that must be included in the emission inventory, but it will then only give rise to registration of CO2 emissions from it – not all other aspects derived from energy consumption. The Part II LCA study gives, as the first study ever, a much more detailed view of chemicals in the various life cycle stages of printed matter. One result of this focus is that paper production no longer dominates exclusively. The study reveals high impacts on eco-toxicity and persistent toxicity, and relatively less on the energy related impacts from paper production. Based on these findings, one could draw parallels to paper production and ask if a similar change from energy dominance to chemicals might appear if a more complete picture of the use of chemicals in paper production was drawn. To investigate this is, however, outside the scope of this study. 3.3 Comparison to the Swan criteria for printing paperCompared to the emission parameters covered in the Swan criteria for printing paper (version 2.5), a fairly good accordance is observed. The four water emission parameters and the three air emission parameters of the Paper Profile are all included in the Swan criteria. However, the Swan criteria requires a full chemical declaration, and focuses further on some problematic chemicals that are not mentioned in the Paper Profile Manual at all: alkylphenol derivates, residual monomers and acrylamide, surface-active agents and foam inhibitors of low biodegradability, chlorine gas for bleaching, EDTA/DTPA and biocides. For the energy issue, the Swan criteria also limit the scope to the narrow pulp and paper production. However the Swan does not only cover electricity bought from the grid, but also includes own energy production and the procurement of fuels and residual products used for energy production. Waste is in the Swan criteria handled at the sorting level, setting up only general requirements for fractions to be “recycled or processed in an appropriate manner”. The Paper Profile Manual covers one waste stream, “solid waste land-filled”, by recording the dry weight deposited. 3.4 Methodological DiscussionAs the parameters given in the Paper Profile Manual do not cover a life cycle perspective for paper products, the scheme cannot be seen as more than a type II self claim. Self-claims do normally cover only one or few parameters, for example, the fraction of recycled raw material or the absence of lead in the product. By setting up a self-claim programme, which apparently covers the life cycle, users may be caught in the misunderstanding that by following the Manual, a full EPD, covering the life cycle of paper is documented. This is not the case, and users may encounter problems with marketing law if they claim in general terms that their product is environmentally friendly, based on the declaration only. The scope for energy consumption in pulp and paper production is subject to discussion, due to different viewpoints on timber as a resource for paper versus energy production. This issue has great influence on the environmental impact of paper products, especially chemical pulp based paper produced in non-integrated pulp and paper productions, and is therefore important to the results in a declaration. According to the Paper Profile Manual, only electricity bought from the grid should be included, but much energy for pulp processing comes from burning excess timber, which is then not included on the resource pull, but included regarding the emissions of NOX and SO2. Type II claims are justified as the simple, informal way of communicating environmental information on products to costumers. A type II claim is normally not life cycle based, but on the other hand, it may be based on life cycle data, if available. Therefore, a claim system like the one defined in the Paper Profile Manual would provide a better solution if integrated with type I and type III labelling, as defined in ISO14020. In such a case, a full LCA on a paper product will then form the basis of both an eco-labelling type I licence, and EPD and selected type II claims ad hoc. EPD product specific requirements (PSR) are under development in the Nordic Tissue Association for tissue paper products, established and expired for sawn timber under the Swedish EPD Scheme and present for two kinds of packaging under the Japanese Scheme and one kind of tissue product under the Korean Scheme. PSR may also be expected under the emerging Danish Scheme 2004-06. Swan type I criteria have been available for printing paper since 1996. Therefore, much of the framework for an integrated system is already available, and drivers for product oriented environmental policies are emerging over the next decade. Thus, we can expect efforts from many stakeholders to bring different approaches and tools together aiming at a future integrated system approach, which may embrace both eco-labelling type I-III and management systems with input from IPPC activities, synergies with greener procurement actions etc Fodnoter It is stated in the introductory text to the Paper Profile Manual that: “In order to verify that a declaration complies with the Paper Profile environmental product declaration format and with this manual, accredited verification of the declaration by a certification body is highly recommended.”
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