eBooks - A Greener Choice or Not?

Today we're happy to host Angela Wieck, co-founder of EcoBrain (www.EcoBrain.com), an independent eBook distributor and the only online retailer of eBooks dedicated to the environment and environmentally friendly living. We partner with EcoBrain, which offers its customers to plant trees with Eco-Libris), and today we have the pleasure to bring you an article of Angela about one of the most interesting issues in the book industry - eBooks vs. paper books: which option is greener?

eBooks - A Greener Choice or Not?

Lately there has been quite a bit of debate about whether eBooks really are greener than paper books or not. This surprised me because I thought it was obvious. However, the more I read, the more I wanted to learn. My conclusion is that yes, eBooks are greener. Read on to find out why.

One big variable is whether or not you use an eBook reader. Some companies that offer eBook readers require that you buy the eBooks from them as the file type is proprietary. So if you buy a Kindle, you must buy the associated eBook for the Kindle from Amazon. From a profit perspective this is understandable. However, as a consumer this smells of monopoly to me. It also raises the question of whether the ebook reader’s production and eventual disposal make ebooks a less green option.

The debate about eBooks being a greener choice gets radically simplified if we take eBook readers out of the equation. Let’s do that. because you don’t need one anyway. As a consumer you can choose to purchase a file type that does not require a dedicated eBook device that may be expensive and one day end up in a landfill. For example, at EcoBrain.com the majority of our files are PDFs - you can read them on whatever computer you already have. Removing eBook readers from the equation makes this much easier.

I already own a computer. Don’t you? You probably wouldn’t be reading this if you didn’t. So for someone who already owns a computer, the green choice of buying and eBook over a paper book is clear. Don’t get me wrong - I love paper books and enjoy relaxing with a great novel. However, those I get from the library. For the majority of books to own, eBooks are clear winners.

Think about the following facts from Conservatree:

24 trees are required to produce a ton of printing paper for books

12 trees are harvested for a ton of newsprint

up to 35% of books printed for consumers are never read - they are returned to the publisher to be destroyed

A mature tree can produce enough oxygen in a year for 10 people to inhale in a year. Never mind that forests are a place of majesty where precious ecosystems exist. eBooks are created electronically and no trees are cut down to produce them, no ink is used, no fossil fuel to run the printing presses or to deliver them. eBooks don’t need heated or cooled warehouses to store them. eBooks are delivered to you electronically. They are disposed of by using your delete key. They will never take up landfill.

The pollution put out by the pulp and paper industry is another consideration. With the increasing trend towards overseas printing, many books are now printed in Asia, shipped to a local port, trucked to a distribution center and then shipped to a store or to your home if purchased online. Even if the paper for the book was sourced locally, pulp and paper is the third largest industrial polluter to air, water, and land in Canada and the United States, releasing well over 100 million kg (220 million pounds) of toxic pollution each year. While many publishers are making positive strides to produce recycled books, the bottom line is that there is still a huge environmental cost.

Now, to be completely fair, even eBooks used on your existing computer consume some energy. We should assume you run your computer longer in order to read the eBook. I found an excellent analysis of the energy consumed written up by Pablo Päster. It reads:

“My laptop uses about 30 watts (more during start-up). In the time it takes to read a page (8.5 x 11), let's say two minutes, the computer will use 0.001 kWh (kilowatt-hours) of electricity. For a 100-page document this adds up to 0.1 kWh of electricity, costing you less than 2 cents on your electricity bill. The generation of electricity creates about 1,000 pounds of greenhouse gases per MWh (megawatt-hour), or 1 pound per kWh, depending on where your electricity comes from. This means that reading a 100-page document on your laptop causes about one-tenth of a pound of greenhouse gas emissions. Pretty small. But how does that compare to paper?”

He goes on to find that it is much better than paper. For the full details go to: http://www.salon.com/env/ask_pablo/2008/09/08/printers/

And with an eye to the future, isn’t it easier to generate renewable electrical power sources than to try to make the paper industry pollution free? Is the latter even possible?

So save trees, reduce pollution and breathe easier. I don’t see a downside. Do you?

The main obstacle left is to win over consumers. Given the clear green choice perhaps more consumers will give eBooks a try. If each of us choose to purchase 4 or 5 eBooks a year versus paper books, the impact would be huge. Americans alone buy 3 billion books a year. Imagine the trees we could save. Choosing an eBook is another conscious choice we make, much like choosing to use a canvas bag when we shop and say no to petroleum based plastic bags. Together, we can make a world of difference.

For those who haven’t tried an eBook, here are some additional considerations that focus on the eBook experience:

Portability - You can own an entire digital library of books on your laptop or computer. No space is taken up on shelves and you can take them all with you!

Convenience - eBooks download instantly. You can read them anytime, anywhere!

Ease of Use - Click to turn pages, find what you are looking for fast by searching, use the built-in dictionary, bookmark pages, and so on. Super easy to use!

Great prices - Most of our eBooks are about 30% below the MSRP.

Now until November 11, 2008 at EcoBrain.com new customers get a $5 site credit. There are lots of books for under $5, so give EcoBrain and eBooks a try. We also have a freebie (and paper free) available on the home page. So try an eBook for free. See what you think. I bet you’ll find it easier than you thought. Maybe you’ll even choose to buy one over a paper book and help green our world.

By Angela Wieck - angela@EcoBrain.com
Vancouver, BC, Canada

Eco-Libris is collaborating with Bookswim in an holiday campaign!

We are happy to announce on a collaboration with BookSwim (http://www.bookswim.com), the premier online book rental service!

BookSwim, established June 2006, is the first full-service online book rental service lending you paperbacks and hardcovers, Netflix-style, directly to your house, without the need to purchase. Whether it's new releases, bestsellers, or classics, they have something for everyone, with free shipping both ways! Read your books as long as you want — no late fees! Even choose to purchase and keep the titles you love!

Now BookSwim is offering virtual gift cards which are the perfect gift for those who love to read. A tree will be planted with Eco-Libris in honor of every gift purchased. We had done it with BookSwim last year and we're happy to partner again this year to green up their gift cards.

BookSwim are also giving incentives to customers to purchase gift cards between now and December 31, including a $5 gift card to be used by you for every $50 gift card purchased. Similarly, for every $100 gift card you buy, you will receive your own $20 gift card. Additionally, 2 lucky winners will receive a $299 Sony Blu-Ray Disc Player. One entry for every gift card purchase. Check it out at https://www.bookswim.com/gift.html

BookSwim is a great service and as a rental service it also has green qualities, similar to those of libraries due to the fact that it helps to maximize the use of every copy that is already printed. You can read more on BookSwim and the environment here: You can read more at: http://www.bookswim.com/media_kit_vision.html#theEnvironment

So don't forget to check out BookSwim's gift cards - it's a great affordable (and green!) gift for the holidays for every book lover.

Yours,

Raz @ Eco-Libris
www.ecolibris.net

A new study: The destruction of forests costs much more than the financial crisis in Wall Street

Would you believe that annual loss from the disappearance of forests is greater than the current losses of Wall Street?

According to an EU commissioned study, the destruction of forests cost global economy $2-$5 trillion every year, whereas Wall Street by various calculations has to date lost, within the financial sector, $1-$1.5 trillion.

The BBC News reported (thanks to GreenLine Paper for the tip!) about this study, entitled "The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity" (Teeb) and headed by Pavan Sukhdev, an economist of Deutsche Bank. According to the article, the first phase of the study concluded in May when the team released its finding that forest decline could be costing about 7% of global GDP.

So what is exactly this economic loss that results out of the destruction of forests? well, the principle is quite simple - as forests decline, nature stops providing services which it used to provide us essentially for free, such as providing clean water and absorbing carbon dioxide. Then, the report explains, the human economy has to provide them instead, perhaps through building reservoirs, building facilities to sequester carbon dioxide, and so on, or we have to do without them. Either way, there is a financial cost.

If you ask yourself how come the Wall Street crisis gets so much attention and of course an immediate remedy, whereas the forests are left behind, think of relevance to your daily life. I think that's the main issue here. Of course we need more regulation and economic steps to be taken to support conservation and make sure living trees will have greater value than trees that are cut down, but in the bottom line it's mainly about relevance.

People were persuaded that the Wall Street crisis is relevant for each and every one of them due to its overall influence on the economy. But most people don't find the forests' crisis relevant to their daily life, and therefore it doesn't really matter what the price tag attached to this crisis is. And if it won't matter to people, governments and businesses (but especially governments) will find it much more difficult to act in the right direction.

How you make the forests' desctruction more personally relevant for people? I wish I had the right answer. My belief is that it is a combination of more education, more political awareness, more business action and more media attention. As you see there's a lot to be done but we need to stay optimistic and believe in our ability to achieve this goal even in time of financial difficulties.

At least Mr. Sukhdev, the study leader succeed to see the full half of the glass. "governments and businesses" he says, "are getting the point." And he further expalins: "times have changed. Almost three years ago, even two years ago, their eyes would glaze over. Today, when I say this, they listen. In fact I get questions asked - so how do you calculate this, how can we monetize it, what can we do about it, why don't you speak with so and so politician or such and such business."

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris
www.ecolibris.net

More posts relevant to this issue:

Al Gore and Wangari Maathai calls the U.N. General Assemby to support protection of forests

Will the new international fund save the Amazon?

Green Options 2: The Nature Conservancy: 320,000 Acres of Forest Protected in Landmark Deal

Merrill Lynch is investing in forest protection


* Picture Courtesy of Sustainable Harvest international

A new partnership with Norwegian publisher starts with a new book on Arne Næss

We love Norway. It's a beautiful and eco-friendly country (we wrote about Norwegian green initiatives in the past). Today we have one more reason to add to the list (not that we don't have enough..) - we're happy to announce on a new collaboration of Eco-Libris with the Norwegian publisher Flux.

Flux are publishers of a magazine and literature within the fields of philosophy, cosmology and ecology and a sustainable future. They're very unique publishers in their approach - some of the questions they ask are: Is it possible to find a deeper resonance between man, society, nature and universe? How can we shift or expand perspectives? What do we find in the forefronts of science? What are the underlying assumptions for science and society? What do we find behind and between formalized categories and reference frames? What about the paradoxes in our lives? What is the role of art and mythology? How do we release human intuition and creative power?

Flux seeks to shed light on these questions through dialogue, fruitful interchange between logic and intuition and crossfertilisation of subjects and fields. Key guidelines: essence, timelessness, reality, simplicity.

Now Flux are collaborating with Eco-Libris to plant trees for their publications, starting with a great book (in Norwegian) - Dyp glede (Deep Joy): Arne Næss on deep ecology by Per Ingvar Haukeland.

What this book is about? here's a short description of it from Flux:

Writer and scientist Per Ingvar Haukeland says, ’I have long felt the need to make Arne Næss’ ecosophy and deep ecology works more available to Norwegian readers, in the hope that more may be inspired to explore their own ecosophy and bring about change in a more ecologically sustainable direction. With this book we can finally present these works.’

The book consists of extracts of works spanning a 40-year period. Its five sections cover the core themes in Næss’ ecosophical and deep ecology thought; 1) The Gravity—and Levity—of Our Times; 2) Sources of Inspiration; 3) Ecosophy; 4) the Deep Ecology movement; and 5) visions for the future. Each section is made up of several subdivisions, which are tied together through short introductions.With images and text we also present individuals who are, and have been, important inspirations to Næss and to deep ecology.

Arne Næss is a very important ecological philosopher and we're very happy to start our collaboration with Flux by planting trees to balance out this great book about his work.

Næss by the way is also very much connected to the birth of Flux - In 2000 Flux published the book Hvor kommer virkeligheten fra? (What is This Thing Called Reality?), seventeen conversations with the philosopher Arne Næss - 'father of deep ecology' - previously printed in the Flux Magazine. This inspired them to start their own publishing house in 2003 with two books in the Paradigm series.

The book's launch will be on November 13. We'll keep you posted with more updates about the book and of course with further news on our new collaboration with Flux. In the meantime you are invited to visit their website: http://www.flux.no

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris

Plant a tree for every book you read!

Green Options: Want to Green Your Addiction to Books? Buy Ebooks

As part of Eco-Libris' ongoing content partnership with Green Options Media, we feature a post that was originally published by Jeff McIntire-Strasburg on October 27 on Sustainablog. Today's post talks about one of our favorite topics: ebooks.

OK, I admit it: I'm a book whore (hardly a shocking confession for a former English professor). I'm most vulnerable to impulse buying in a book store. When a publishing PR rep contacts me about a book for review, I jump on it like an addict desperate for that next fix.

But, of course, I also know that book publishing takes a fairly heavy environmental toll: as our friends at EcoLibris have pointed out, "more than 30 million trees are cut down annually for virgin paper used for the production of books sold in the U.S. alone." The WorldWatch Institute notes that the average American uses over 300 kilograms (or over 660 pounds) of paper annually. And Erika Engelhaupt, in Environmental Science & Technology, observes:

Reducing paper use does more than save trees. Pulp and paper mills are also a major source of pollution. They release into the air CO2, nitrogen oxides (NOx), sulfur oxides (SOx), carbon monoxide, and particulates, which contribute to global warming, smog, acid rain, and respiratory problems. In addition, bleaching paper with chlorine can produce dioxin, which is known to cause cancer. Paper mills also produce large amounts of solid waste and require a lot of water. The industry is trying to clean up, but anyone who's driven past a paper mill has smelled the challenge.

Yep, that book addiction has quite the footprint. There are numerous approaches to dealing with this impact: "cradle to cradle" book design, Ecolibris-style offsets, used of recycled and non-toxic materials, and, of course, ebooks.

Does size (and margins) matter? Yes! - Les Wallace offers a way to save trees and money at the same time

Today Eco-Libris blog is hosting Les Wallace, a long-time activist of the U.K. who suggests a creative yet simple idea to reduce the usage of paper (and trees) in books. This way is not only costly but will actually save publishers money..

What Happened to Reduce?

There has been a good deal of effort, often led by authors, in reducing the environmental problems caused by the publishing industry. This has usually involved specifying the use of certain paper in its books i.e. non chlorine bleached, not sourced from old growth forests or is at least partly made from recycled paper.

This is to be welcomed and encouraged, but it has missed the most important and by far the easiest method for reducing the environmental impact of publishing – the actual amount of paper it uses.

Comparing books will show that there is a massive difference in the size of their margins. It is not uncommon to see a book that could reduce its paper use by 10 or 15% plus simply by reducing its margins to a size used by other volumnes.

This saves resources, reduces transport and packaging costs, takes up less shelf space and is more convenient for consumers – less paper same text.. Money saved could be used by publishers to use more recycled fibre, if additional cost is an issue.

A mere 10% reduction in paper use for books in America alone would result save 3 million trees every year just by someone reducing margin size when they are designing layout on a PC! Books should start carrying messages that they have reduced paper use by conscientious design in the same way they don't use fiber from ancient forest or do use recycled paper.

It would be great to see both messages together. We need to raise awareness of this fundamental issue amongst publishers, writers and other readers. Emailing photos of books with excessive margins next to those with sensible ones to publishers will show just how wasteful this practice is - totally unnecessary and a form of over packaging.

Les Wallace has been active in recycling and waste reduction for 19 years, He is a member of Falkirk Friends of the Earth group and a member of Friends of the Earth Scotland's CREW (Communities Reducing Excess Waste) scheme. He worked as an intern at the Hackensack Meadowlands Development Centre (HMDC) in 1992 helping to promote reduce, reuse, recycle issues to school kids and the general public.

Monday's green books: Celebrate Green! (and a giveaway of the book)

After a short break of one week we're back with our beloved Monday's green books series, and today we're celebrating! Our book today is:

"Celebrate Green! Creating Eco-Savvy Holidays, Celebrations & Traditions for the Whole Family" by Corey Colwell-Lipson & Lynn Colwell

Few weeks ago we announced here on our collaboration with the authors (buyers of the book on the Celebrate Green! website are offered to plant a tree with their copy of Celebrate Green!) and today we're happy to review the book and to give away one copy of it.

I read quite a few guides for green living in the last year or so, but this is the first guide I know that is focused on holidays and celebrations. Why? the authors explain: "the reason it's important to green up our celebrations is that holidays and special days are plentiful...holidays and special days don't happen on one day only in one place; they occur throughout the year in homes, schools, and places of work across the globe." (p. 20)

I have to say I like the concept. Firstly, holidays and celebrations are many times part of traditions, whether these are on personal, family, local or national level. If we embed green practices into traditions, it will be much easier to pass them to the next generations. Second, holidays and celebrations require planning and giving some thought about the details, and hence provide an excellent opportunity to think and discuss the importance of green practices. Lynn Colwell and Corey Colwell-Lipson, a mother and daughter, started their green holidays journey on Halloween 2006 and this book is an important milestone on their green journey.

The book is covering various holidays, from Christmas and Hanukkah to Father's Day and St. Patrick's Day. It also talks about many types of celebrations such as baby showers, wedding anniversaries, office parties and so on. For each of these holidays and celebrations you will find many useful tips on how to green them up. Want an example? how about Halloween, the holiday where it all started for the authors and actually the nearest holiday on the calender..

So how to green up your Halloween? it starts with choosing eco-friendly and/or people friendly treats and treasures. Also use the 3Rs when it comes to treats and treasures: reduce their amount (kids will cherish it more), recycle (make treasures from recycled materials) and reuse (stuff you don't need can be great treasures). You will also find recommendations on green party favors and prizes, eco-friendly costumes, tips on hosting a Green Halloween party and more.

One important thing is that the book try to keep it real. Not too much complicated stuff and many ideas that can fit everyone - from the busiest people to those who have all the time in the world. Still, the authors don't pretend green celebrations can be made at no time and make sure you will understand that it requires planning to have a successful green holiday or party. They also show you how green alternatives don't have to be necessarily costly, as many people may assume mistakenly. Anyone who will implement the 3Rs for any of the holidays will find that you can actually "save some green while going green".

So if you are kind of person (and who doesn't) who likes to celebrate and enjoy the holidays and at the same time care about the environment and your footprint this is defenitely the book for you! Add to it the facts that Celebrate Green! is printed on 30% recycled and 70% FSC certified paper, collaborating with Eco-Libris and a portion of the proceeds from the book benefit Treeswing and Healthy Child, Healthy World and you've also a great green and affordable gift to give on the holidays.

GIVEAWAY ALERT!!!

We are giving away our review copy of Celebrate Green! How do you get a chance to win it? all you have to do is to add a comment below with a story or advice of yours on how to make holidays and celebrations more eco-friendly. If you have a tip or a story about Halloween that would be great!

Submissions are accepted until Sunday, November 2, 12PM EST. We will pick the comment we liked best and the winner will be announced the following day.

And don't forget to check out these websites:

Celebrate Green! website - http://www.celebrategreen.net

More suggestions on how to green your Halloween - http://www.greenhalloween.org

Yours,
Raz @ Eco-Libris
www.ecolibris.net