“It is great to see some publishers following the lead set by Raincoast
books in Canada. It is now up to publishers like Scholastic in
the U.S. to respond to the challenge that has been laid down,” said
Pamela Wellner, Greenpeace senior campaigner. “Scholastic is one of the
largest Harry Potter publishers globally. If it had printed the book on
100 percent recycled paper, its 10.8 million print run could have saved
217,475 trees.”
In 2003, Raincoast Books, working with the
Markets Initiative, a
coalition project between Greenpeace Canada, Friends of Clayoquot Sound
and the Sierra Club, set a positive trend for Harry Potter publishers
by printing
Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
on 100 percent post-consumer recycled paper. Since then, Greenpeace has
been encouraging other Harry Potter publishers to print their books on
forest-friendly paper.
More than 12,500 Greenpeace members wrote to Scholastic at the
beginning of the year, urging it not to use ancient forest fiber, such
as that from the
North American boreal forests, for Harry Potter #6,
but the company did not respond to their wishes. Greenpeace is
now encouraging U.S. readers to
let Scholastic know that they will be
purchasing tree-friendly copies of the book from the Canadian publisher.
“It is sadly ironic that Scholastic, a children’s book publisher,
refused to use environmentally sound paper for this wildly popular
book. They could have helped protect our children’s natural
heritage instead of fostering its destruction,” said Wellner.
Other international Harry Potter publishers are taking the following actions:
- The German edition published by Carlsen will be printed on 40
percent post-consumer recycled paper, with the virgin fiber coming from
Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified sources. The FSC is the only
credible company that ensures that virgin fiber is coming from
environmentally and socially responsible sources.
- The U.K. edition, published by Bloomsbury, is expected to be
printed on 30 percent FSC-certified paper. Greenpeace hopes that the
publisher will use 100 percent ancient-forest-friendly paper for future
Harry Potter print runs.
- The Israeli and Italian editions, published by Books in the
Attic and Yediot Ahronot Books and Salani, respectively, have made
commitments to print the book on ancient-forest-friendly paper when
they are published this autumn.
Greenpeace is also asking other Harry Potter publishers like Editorial
Salamandra (Spain) and Buhrmann (Holland), to follow Raincoast Books
and Carlsen’s lead for their print run.
