Print has a lower potential for raising greenhouse gas emissions than the digital equivalent according to a large academically robust study by the eco institute of Freiburg, a body with a global reputation. Print can have a carbon footprint one fifth of that of online and can have a greater reach than the digital equivalent.
The research team studied the lifecycle of a printed brochure and a newspaper ad comparing these to the same brochure downloaded as a PDF and a banner ad, using measurements from printers in the DACH countries, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the Netherlands comparing these to files downloaded from data centres in central Europe. In almost all cases the greenhouse gas potential from print was well below that of digital.
The study, published as a “Comparative evaluation of the greenhouse gas potential of print advertising compared to online advertising”, begins with forestry and paper making for the print calculations and takes in the printing processes, energy and consumables and delivery to the point of readership. That for online includes elements for the manufacture of computers or phones, the data centres holding the files and the network to deliver them. The element for designing the ad or brochure was not included as the process is essentially the same for both.
All the work was carried out within standards set down by the International Protocol on Climate Change and to ISO standards and part of this the final report was audited.
The study took a 24pp product, printed on 36.6gsm SC paper on a heatset web offset press with spine gluing. This was printed at a number of sites across the countries involved. The same 24pp product was supplied as a downloadable PDF.
Engagement was reckoned to be higher with print, each page of the brochure attracting 10 seconds of viewing compared to 2.5 seconds per page on a screen.
The newspaper calculation used a 43gsm recycled grade printing on a coldset press with a similar attention span. The newspaper was reckoned to be purchased from a newsstand as the researchers say there is no way to calculate a figure for home delivery.
But there are variables: for print this covers the production of different papers that might be used and the size of a newspaper ad. For online the variables that might change the calculations include the viewing time and size of the ad that is downloaded. The research does not include the hidden downloads, the cookies, trackers and other files that come with a download.
The report calculated the carbon footprint for a printed ad, as one page in the 24pp brochure reaching one million impressions, to be 642kg CO2e, five times lower than that for the PDF alternative at 3,360kg CO2e. The printed newspaper was also well below digital, though the advantage was not as great: 67kg CO2e compared to 102kg CO2e.
While different papers will have an impact on the figure for print, it will not be enough to lift print’s footprint to the level of digital.
The research also only focuses on a specific pair of products. It is not enough to be able to conclude that a printed book will have a lower impact than an ebook. That will demand another piece of research.
