Michael Makin of PIA/GATF spoke next, introducing the legislation that US printers have to contend with – complexity appears to be fairly universal, the UK is not alone in this – and his organisation’s recent initiative, the ‘Sustainable Green Printing Partnership’, or SGP, which they were beta trialling. This partnership has a vision – a vision to “Establish the print and graphic communications industry as a leader/model within the business community for the adoption and promotion of sustainable business practices designed to reduce the global impact of the industry sector.” This is a worthy, and worthwhile ambition, as the industry is uniquely placed: the high proportion of materials from renewable sources, recyclable or both offers true potential for a sustainable industry.

They aim to promote this cause by means of:

• Establishing industry benchmarks

• Having a clear set of criteria for printing practices

• Requiring 3^rd party verification

(Whereas in the UK printers are under pressure to achieve ISO 14001, the US printing industry does not have the same ‘green indicator’ as the total take up of ISO 14001 is comparatively low in the USA. The ISO survey of 2006 showed that, despite its size, the USA has only 5,585 certificates, compared with 6,070 for the rather smaller UK, 18,842 in China and 22,593 in Japan. As a requirement of ISO 14001 is to consider indirect impacts on the environment, one of which will be an organisation’s supply chain, the Standard creates a natural trickle down effect that UK printers are currently feeling.)

The SGP has two categories: SGP printer, or candidate pending verification. To be the former, the identified criteria must have been met. The latter must meet minimum criteria, including regulatory compliance, and has a one year time limit. The scheme is recognised by the EPA – the US Environmental Protection Agency – and major publishers, and works in co-operation with a number of partners.