Sustainability in Action: Saving Carbon by Taking to the Rails

We are often asked about what we do to be sustainable and how we work with our suppliers to make changes that will help us minimize our environmental impact. Here is one example of how we worked with our primary paper supplier, New Leaf Paper, to switch our paper delivery to freight and save 330 lbs. of carbon emissions per shipment.

It all started when CEO Mario Assadi was looking for additional ways to reduce our footprint. One of the things that he realized was that having our Reincarnation paper shipped by truck was releasing a significant amount of carbon, and that shifting our paper delivery to freight would minimize this. Two years ago, he asked New Leaf if this was possible. At the time, we were told that it wasn’t possible. However, as New Leaf began a search to find new trucks or other shipping methods, the possibility of freight came up again. And this time, the switch to rail was feasible!

According to New Leaf, switching our delivery to freight will save 330 lbs. of carbon per shipment. Additionally, rail transportation helps relieve congestion on the nation’s highways, and the federal Environmental Protection Agency has noted that transportation by rail currently is the more environmentally friendly mode of transportation.

For example, the EPA estimates that a typical truck emits nearly three times as much nitrogen oxide and particulate matter than a locomotive on a ton-mile basis. If just 10 percent of the freight that currently moves by truck was diverted to rail, fuel savings would approach one billion gallons per year!

Greenhouse gas emissions are directly related to fuel consumption. Because railroads are, on average, three or more times more fuel efficient than trucks, railroads have a smaller carbon footprint. Every ton-mile of freight that moves by rail instead of truck reduces greenhouse gas emissions by two-thirds or more.

Unfortunately, this only applies to the matte Reincarnation stock paper for now. The Sakura Silk and Primavera papers are bought overseas on a container ship, and we are phasing out use of these papers  so we can use U.S. made papers instead.