San Juan County switching to office paper with recycled content

Brian Rader
SJC Pollution Prevention Specialist

I want it all. That's right, I want it all. I want San Juan County to be responsible to the citizens that pay for our salaries and expenses by:

1. obtaining office supplies at competitive prices,
   
2. supporting local businesses, and
   
3. making environmentally responsible purchasing decisions.

Thanks to a new agreement between the County and Island Paper & Supply Company on Lopez Island, for a product produced by the Grays Harbor paper mill in Hoquiam, Washington, we get to have it all! A perfect trifecta of supplies acquisition!
A reasonable person might ask, "What is the big deal? Why don't you just go out and buy some paper with recycled content?" True enough. Large warehouse stores have inexpensive office paper with recycled content. There are also purchasing cooperatives for governmental organizations that offer recycled paper at very low prices. The problem is, I really don't want to send our locally earned tax dollars off-island.
By working with a local supplier, Gerard and Tricia Post van der Burg, owners of Island Paper & Supply, we were able to combine the collective paper use of all county departments to obtain very competitive pricing on an office paper called 'Harbor 40', manufactured by Grays Harbor. Harbor 40 contains 40% post-consumer recycled content.
There are many reasons why this is a good move for the County:

• We are supporting the recycled products market, which is important because we need profitable uses for all that recycled stuff that we drop off at the transfer stations.
  
  
• In addition to purchasing from our island-local supplier (which helps keep dollars local), we are buying from a Washington manufacturer, which helps to preserve jobs in our state. Grays Harbor currently employs over 200 Washingtonians.
  
  
• The Grays Harbor paper mill is arguably the most environmentally responsible and sustainably managed paper mill in North America. Supporting businesses that conserve resources and work hard to improve energy efficiency is good for the economy and good for the environment.
  
  
• By purchasing from a Washington paper mill, less energy and fuel is used to transport the paper from the mill to the island.
  
  
• The resources that are preserved by switching from 100% virgin paper to a paper with 40% recycled content are not trivial.
  
  According to the Environmental Defense Fund's on-line 'paper calculator,' if the County uses 11 tons of paper (San Juan County's approximate paper usage in 2009), these are the savings:

• 16 tons less wood (the equivalent of about 114 trees)
  
  
• 36 million less BTU's of energy
  
  
• 10,823 pounds less CO2 equivalents
  
  
• 52,128 gallons less wastewater
  
  
• 3,165 pounds less solid waste

This change represents a concrete action with measurable results. Hopefully, this will serve as a model for other ideas both within county government and within our community. We may not always be able to achieve a trifecta, but we should always strive for competitive pricing, local suppliers, and environmentally responsible purchasing decisions.

---

brianr@sanjuanco.com
www.sanjuanco.com/pollutionprevention/