For Christmas this year my wife gave me a Kindle – one of the new “e-readers”. Being the technology junkie that I am, and knowing how much I enjoy reading, she thought this was a match made in heaven and was very excited to give it to me. She told me that all the information she had read on the Internet stated that e-readers were more environmentally friendly than paper books. I do admit that I like the Kindle but in my own research on the subject of e-readers vs. paper books, I found the information somewhat lacking, so I am going to give you my own take on the subject.
Both have impacts. Both are resource intensive to produce. There are arguments on both sides claiming that each is better than the other from a resource impact standpoint.
Instead of making a claim of which is better, I instead will point out what is rarely pointed out in the great debate of e-readers vs. paper books – a list of what is involved in the manufacturing of a book and putting it in the hands of the reader and what is involved in manufacturing an e-reader and the e-reader infrastructure needed to supply its user with content.
A lot is involved to produce everything we consume today- including books and e-book readers. Consider this a technologist/green-loving guys’ public service announcement…
It is from the pragmatic realization that no one will be swayed from reading paper books to becoming an avid e-book consumer if they value everything about a paper book. My goal is to have you make new choices in how you consume paper-based content. For the techie folks who love electronic gadgets and wholeheartedly embrace electronic content, my goal is to offer you a new paradigm on what to consider in consuming an e- reader and its content. Whichever one you choose it should be done with an eye toward doing so with the least impact.
A look behind the cover on the steps to print a book
Book production
- Materials for ink production
- Wood extraction from forests for paper production
- Transportation of raw materials to manufacturing facility
- Paper production
- Ink production
- Book manufacturing – printing and binding process
- Transportation to warehouse/distribution/shipping facility
- Buyer transportation to the bookstore or delivery – processing and resource usage to receive shipped book
A look inside the e-reader – what it takes to make an electronic reader and provide access to digital content
E-book production
- Materials extraction and mining
- Transportation of raw materials to processing facilities
- Manufacturing of components and parts (case, electronics, storage, battery, screen)
- Transportation of components and parts to factory for assembly, testing, packaging
- Transportation to warehouse/distribution facility
- Sale processing and shipment to retailer
- Buyer transportation to purchase device or delivery resource usage
- Electricity consumption from use (direct and battery charging)
- Electricity and resource use of e-book store infrastructure
- Electricity to run and cool the Data Center
- Usage of and impact of using WIFI and Internet network or cellular carrier network used to send Econtent
- Server resource usage to store electronic copy of book and run ebookstore
- Don’t forget the resource impact on the manufacturing of storage and computer systems used in the overall system delivery chain of reader and electronic content
Okay, so it’s pretty obvious that both platforms have an impact and use significant resources as part of the production and transportation of the product. Like I thought, I convinced no one to switch allegiances. Let’s then focus on the mindset best geared to reducing the impact of your preference.
Best practice – paper books
- Frequent your local libraries by bike or public transportation
- Reuse – buy a used book, sell it back when you are done
- Buy a book made from recycled paper
- Buy a book using paper from certified forests (specifically the Forest Stewardship Council)
- For every book you buy- go to ecolibris.net and balance your purchase by planting trees on your behalf
Best practice – e-book
- Only consume Ematerial exclusively – stop buying hardcopy whenever possible (continuing to consume hardcopy content when Eversions exist defeats the purpose of any impact advantage an e-book reader would have)
- Power the device off when you aren’t using it
- Use renewable energy to charge the e-reader
- Sell, gift or recycle the e-reader when you want to replace it
- Choose a future e-reader based on the least comparable impact it has from a materials, manufacturing and electricity use standpoint
There is even more detail to go into regarding HOW to do some of these things. Ask me how and I will help figure out the best way to do it with the least impact.
With the recent news that Apple is entering the ebook reader and ebookstore space, it makes this debate even more relevant. If the success of iPod’s and iPhone’s are any indication, millions upon millions of people will be putting iPad’s in their hands and consuming ebook content.
Happy reading.
