Sustainability calculator
Protecting the environment can be so simple. Use our sustainability calculator to calculate how many valuable resources and how much carbon you can save every day just by using recycled paper.
Every sheet of recycled paper made from 100% reclaimed paper improves your ecological footprint and makes an important contribution to a more sustainable future. Let’s make a big difference together now.
Data basis for our sustainability calculator
Our sustainability calculator is based on a comparison between the updated life cycle assessment issued by the Federal Environment Agency in 2022, and a life cycle assessment of our Steinbeis recycled papers which was also prepared by the Ifeu Institute for 2017. In the Federal Environment Agency’s study, the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (Ifeu) in Heidelberg analysed the production of virgin fibre and recycled paper. The main outcome of the study was that in all the indicators considered, recycled paper’s environmental life cycle assessment was far better.
What does the life cycle assessment reveal?
A life cycle assessment is a comprehensive analysis of a product’s life cycle. When it comes to our Steinbeis recycled papers, this includes the extraction and provision of raw fibres from waste paper, the auxiliary materials this requires (including their transport), waste paper preparation, and production at our integrated paper mill using environmentally friendly energy. To make a life cycle assessment of paper, all the relevant emissions and resources are evaluated, such as water and energy consumption in production. The updated LCA now also considers qualitative aspects such as biodiversity, land use change and carbon storage in forests. Recycled paper makes an important contribution to the preservation of biodiversity and protects our forests, which are the largest carbon reservoir on earth.
What are the ecological advantages of recycled paper?
The life cycle assessment shows clearly that the environmental burden of recycled paper production is lowest. Integrated and non-integrated production of virgin paper are almost equal in the market, so it is safe to say that recycled papers perform better in every impact category.
You can read more about recycled paper in our blog post “No toxins, no microplastics – the anti-aging effect of sustainable papers”.
Use our paper calculator to work out how much carbon, water and energy you could save by using Steinbeis recycled paper. For a better life cycle assessment – every sheet counts.