Two years after formalizing its environmental program, Hachette Book Group has released its 2011 Environmental Progress Report. According to the report, Hachette has achieved its goal for at least 20% of its paper to be FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified by 2012 two years early, saying 23% of their paper in 2011 was FSC certified.
For recycled fiber, Hachette hopes to increase to 30% usage by 2012, with a majority to be postconsumer. In 2010, 5% of their paper was postconsumer recycled fiber and Hachette acknolwedged that "the scarcity and quality of recycled fiber, and the reduction of de-inking capacity...does present a challenge for HBG and the trade book industry to meeting this goal." The company added it wa still looking for alternate sources of supply.
To meet its goal of phasing out the use of any controversial sources of paper fiber from endangered forests, especially as it relates to pulp sourced from tropical Indonesia rainforests, Hachette has changed sources of supply in response to certain mills demonstrating inconsistencies in their chain of custody.
By 2020, the goal is to reduce total greenhouse gas emissions linked to publishing operations by 20%. Emissions in 2010 were down 15% vs. the baseline first measured in 2008 and HBG thinks it can exceed the 20% target.
David Young, CEO of Hachette, said, "Since launching our Environmental Policy two years ago, HBG has made exciting progress toward our aggressive targets for reducing the company's carbon footprint and increasing our FSC and recycled fiber use. It's gratifying to see HBG's focused efforts on more environmentally conscious publishing resulting in tangible improvement, and we'll continue to push toward our green goals."
