Conservatree's Environmentally Sound Paper Listing is the most comprehensive compilation of all the environmentally sound printing and writing papers available in the United States and Canada. This listing includes papers manufactured in both countries, as well as papers imported from Europe and Asia.

We have made every effort to ensure the accuracy of these listings. Representatives, most often marketing directors, from the paper companies listed verified the information on each of their papers. When their information was unclear, or we were aware of potential differences, we re-verified the information. In most cases, we had verified the papers several times in the past for listings published when Conservatree was a company, so we were quite aware of the papers' likely contents and the mills' capabilities. When mills claimed TCF or PCF bleaching, we specifically asked for a description of their bleaching sequence, plus verification that any outside pulp also qualified, if we had not verified this information with them in the past.

Nevertheless, despite our best efforts, and because the paper market is constantly changing, there may still be discrepancies. Double-check with the manufacturer the contents and processes that are critical to you for environmental papers before you buy them. If you know of, or learn of, inaccuracies in this listing, please let us know so we can re-investigate and correct them.

There are also a handful of mills, mostly small ones with few papers, that have stalled in getting the information to us. We will continue to pursue this information, to provide a complete listing.

We are still researching private label brands of paper, and will add them shortly. Newsprint and groundwood papers, and then tissue papers, are next on our list.

For unfamiliar terms in these descriptions, see the Glossary.

Brand Name: The name the paper is identified by at the mill or distributor.

• Note that some papers have the word "recycled" in their name. This often means that there is a virgin paper by the same name and, if you don't specify that you want the recycled version, you're likely to get virgin paper. At the same time, if a mill makes a paper both as virgin and recycled, it often prices them the same, too.
• Some brand names, such as "Environment" from Neenah and "Options" from Mohawk, include a collection of different types of environmental papers under one name. Usually the differences vary by the color of the paper. We have tried to make the variations clear, plus indicate how to ask for the paper to ensure that you get the criteria you want.

Mill: The manufacturer of the paper, or the holder of the brand name if it is a private label paper. See the Mill Contacts page for information on how to get their paper in your area. The distribution systems vary considerably from region to region and mill to mill, so contacting the mill for sourcing information is the most direct.

• Some "mills" are now actually divisions within another paper company that bought their company. For example, Hammermill, Beckett, and Strathmore all were once independent mills but now belong to International Paper. However, they still identify their papers by the original mill's name.
• Some papers are "private label" papers, which means that they are marketed under the name of a company that is not the manufacturer but has either specified a special blend or prefers to market the paper as part of their own company. Examples include papers marketed by Xerox, Hewlett Packard and IBM. They also include papers used for special purposes, such as Ecoprint Offset, available only when printing with Ecoprint, an environmental printer in Maryland, and IPA EcoOffset, available only for members of the Independent Press Association that print magazines and newsletters through its paper co-operative buying club.

% Total Recycled Fiber: The minimum recovered fiber guaranteed to be in the paper, both preconsumer and postconsumer. Actual percentages may be higher for some runs of the paper. Some mills may "balance" the percentages in their paper over a quarter or over a year, causing some individual papers to fall short of the minimums (but others to exceed them). If it is essential to you that the actual paper you buy meets the minimums, ask the mill whether it guarantees specific minimums in your purchase.

• If a mill does not identify preconsumer content in its paper, the "total recovered fiber" percentage is assumed to be the same as postconsumer. (Some mills want flexibility to choose either preconsumer or virgin fibers, depending on the current market economics, and therefore do not guarantee a specific preconsumer minimum even when they often could.)
• Cotton fiber, an agricultural residue left over from cotton ginning, is also included in the total recovered fiber percentage, consistent with EPA's definition for "recovered" fiber.
• A few mills make their paper primarily as virgin, but will make it with recycled content if customers request. (There usually is a fairly high minimum purchase required.) These papers are listed with a note that the total recovered fiber could be anywhere from zero to a higher percentage, with a reminder that customers must specify what they want. Otherwise, they will almost assuredly get virgin paper. However, these papers are easily poised to produce standard recycled versions if there are enough customers asking for it.

% Post Consumer Fiber: The minimum percentage of postconsumer fiber in the paper. The actual percentage may be higher, and there may also be preconsumer content as well, but the mill does not want to be held to guarantees other than the minimum.

• Paper industry convention reports recycled or postconsumer content in the paper as a percentage of the fiber only. This is not the same as the percentage of the whole sheet. Uncoated papers may have 70-90% fiber and coated sheets may have as little as 50%, while additives, coatings and other ingredients make up the remainder. The postconsumer percentage is only based on the fiber portion.
• A few mills make their paper primarily as virgin, but will make it with postconsumer recycled content if customers request. (There usually is a fairly high minimum purchase required.) These papers are listed with a note that the postconsumer content could be anywhere from zero to a higher percentage, with a reminder that customers must specify the minimum they will accept. Otherwise, they will probably get virgin paper. However, these papers are easily poised to produce standard recycled versions if there are enough customers asking for it.
• All papers on the paper list have postconsumer content, with the exception of papers that are 100% tree free, are Totally Chlorine Free (TCF), or have Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified fiber.
• Several mills reported papers that had preconsumer content but no postconsumer. We did not list these, but have them in our database. If you cannot find an appropriate environmental version of a grade you need, and you're willing to buy paper with preconsumer content rather than go to a virgin sheet, check with us to see if we can identify an option.

% Tree Free, Type: The percentage of the paper that is tree free, plus a note about where that fiber comes from.

• Cotton fiber may come from cotton linters (an agricultural residue left over after cotton ginning), preconsumer cotton scraps from garment manufacturers, or postconsumer sources such as shredded currency and hotel bed sheets. We identify the types of cotton sources whenever we can.
• We list several 100% cotton papers, but not papers that have 25% or 50% cotton unless they also include postconsumer content. However, there are many non-recycled, partially-cotton papers available from several mills.

Chlorine Free: If the paper has been bleached and processed with no chlorine or chlorine derivatives, this column identifies it as TCF (Totally Chlorine Free, for virgin papers) or PCF (Processed Chlorine Free, for recycled papers).

• Some mills will guarantee TCF processing only by request. Those are indicated in the listing.
• Many mills identified their papers as ECF (elemental chlorine free), which means that they did not use chlorine gas, but did use a chlorine derivative (e.g. chlorine dioxide). There are many variations of ECF processing, and some are far better than others. We did not list ECF papers unless they met other environmental criteria for our list, and even then we do not identify them as ECF because we do not believe that this process is as good as TCF and PCF. However, we will research these papers more in the future, to determine if some of them warrant listing in our Guide.

Certs: If the paper has been certified to meet particular environmental criteria, the certifying body is listed here.

• CFPA indicates papers certified by the Chlorine Free Products Association to meet TCF and PCF criteria, as well as minimum postconsumer content, no old growth forest fibers, and no mill environmental violations.
• EcoLogo is the Canadian symbol for environmental products meeting a reduced "environmental burden" according to a formula developed by TerraChoice Environmental Services.
• FSC indicates that at least 70% of the fiber in the paper is from forests certified as sustainably managed by the Forest Stewardship Council. FSC requires a rigorous investigation of forestry practices before it awards its seal. However, since only a percentage of the paper's fiber must meet its criteria, you still have to investigate the source for the rest of the fiber in order to ensure that the paper meets your environmental requirements.
• Green Seal certifies papers and products that meet its minimum environmental criteria.
• ISO 14001 is a company management process protocol which requires extensive planning and organization. It does not certify product contents.
• Nordic Swan is a European environmental product label with standards for low emissions in pulp and paper production.
• NYS refers to papers meeting criteria established for New York State's environmental labeling program.
• SCS is certification by Scientific Certification Systems, which verifies specific environmental claims, depending on what manufacturers wish to guarantee. Check with the mill or SCS to find out what the specific SCS certification covers.

Acid Free: Papers made in an alkaline process, which is intended to ensure longevity.

Brightness: A measure of light reflection from a page. Higher brightness papers usually appear "whiter," although not always. Usually, only white papers report brightness levels, although some offwhite papers do as well; colored papers do not.

• Recycled papers, as a group, usually have brightness levels a few points lower than virgin papers, as a group. However, some recycled papers have very high brightness levels, competitive with the highest brightness levels for virgin papers, and some virgin papers have lower brightness levels.
• Chlorine free papers have brightness levels consistent with the virgin versions of the grade of paper. In fact, the brightest paper on the market is a TCF paper.

Colors: Does the paper come in White, Offwhite, and/or Colors? If there are only a couple of colors, we list them. Otherwise, get a swatchbook from the Mill Contact to see the variety.

Finish: What types of finish are available for this brand? This is particularly relevant to graphic designers who want a specific "look," and to book and magazine publishers.

Web Basis Wts: Is the paper sold in web rolls, necessary for some printers' web (continuous roll) presses? If so, we list the basis weights available.

• Most basis weights are in standard U.S. measurement by pounds. Some European papers are made to metric specifications and have converted their basis weights to pounds, which may result in decimal fractions.

Sheet Basis Wts: Is the paper sold in sheets, for printers' sheet-fed presses? Usually this refers to parent-size sheets, although for some grades it can include cut-size sheets as well.

• Most basis weights are in standard U.S. measurement by pounds. Some European papers are made to metric specifications and have converted their basis weights to pounds, which may result in decimal fractions.