Foreseeing The World Without Paper
Foreseeing The World Without Paper
The World wakes up with the newspaper every day!! Everyone needs paper to write, to note and several other purposes. Can we imagine a World without Paper?? Is it possible?? Yes, why not!! In this article, we are going to discuss the world before the paper, present world with paper and our ideas of the future world where the paper is replaced with modern technology. But, we need to make a paper-free world to save the environment and to maintain ecological balance.
Why is Aug 1 celebrated as Paper Day?
Papertells is India’s primary handmade paper factory based in Pune, (The Handmade Paper Institute). Mahatma Gandhi had propagated the value of Paper following his participation at the Haripur Congress. Mahatma Gandhi later convinced Scientist K.B Joshi to establish the Handmade Paper Institute that began to manufacture paper out of waste materials. This institute was inaugurated by Shri Jawaharlal Nehru on 1 August 1940. The paper made at this institute is the most eco-friendly one.
The manufacturing process is entirely eco-friendly which does not pollute the environment at any cause. The paper has a shelf life of 100 to 500 year and also it was used as the first true copy of the Indian Constitution The Constitution of India was written and printed on paper manufactured at this unit. A curtain-raiser for the “ Paper Day” was conducted on Nov 1st, 2017 at Hall No 7, Conference Hall, Pragati Maidan, New Delhi where it was declared that 1st August every year will be seen in India as Paper Day.
Tear bits of paper is actually tear spill of a tree
Paper is such a versatile material that, we hardly notice when we use it for several purposes like writing, printing, packaging, cleaning, communication, etc. Although we frequently take it for granted, it’s hard to imagine what our lives might be like without it, hence we need to be aware when utilizing paper because there are so many resources used in making it. Do you know how many trees are required to produce paper? It’s hard to believe, but twelve trees, 540,000 litres of water, on average, many necessary chemicals are all needed to produce one ton of paper. There is also fuel consumption in transporting the trees and paper. Additionally, only 37 per cent of the paper produced is recycled.
History of paper
Papermaking has traditionally been traced to China when Cai Lun, an official attached to the Imperial court during the Han Dynasty, created a sheet of paper using mulberry and other bast fibres along with fishnets, old rags, and hemp waste, though the earliest piece of paper found, at Fangmatan in Gansu province inscribed with a map, dates from 179-41 BC. After the defeat of the Chinese in the Battle of Talas in 751 which is present-day Kyrgyzstan, the invention spread to the Middle East. Many Chinese materials were not available to MiddleEastern papermakers, who instead used flax and other substitute fibres, as well as a human-powered trip hammer to prepare the pulp.
Egypt continued with the thicker paper, while Iran became the centre of the thinner papers. Papermaking was diffused across the Islamic world, from where it was diffused further west into Europe. With the conquest of Sind by the Arabs, Khurasani paper was first introduced in India early in the eighth century AD. Muslim merchants introduced paper manufacture to India in the 13th century, where it almost wholly replaced traditional writing materials. Later, Aug 1 is celebrated as Paper Day in India.
Recycling of paper
Have you ever wondered what happens to a piece of paper when you recycle it? Recycling is not as simple as it may seem. Paper can be recycled only 5 to 8 times before the fibres in the paper become too short and weak to be reused. Old newspapers are commonly used to make tissue and cardboard, while magazines are often recycled into newsprint. Interestingly, the clay originally added to the paper to make it glossy. It will also help to separate the ink from the paper during recycling.
Foreseeing the World without Paper
Why do we need a world without paper? Firstly, to save our environment, i.e our trees, our forest, animals habitat. Secondly, to keep our society green & clean by preventing landfills with waste papers. When computers first entered our lives more than 20 years ago, the idea of having electronic communication was born. Soon the Internet and email brought electronic communication into reality. The arguments for getting rid of paper are even stronger today than in the past. By eliminating paper in cabinets, a company can create more space and reduce storage costs outside the workplace. Through the exchange of electronic information with suppliers and customers, a business can make information quickly accessible anywhere, ensuring the privacy and security with the use of encryption, passwords and other security measures.
Alternative sources to save paper
Because of fire, deterioration, water damage or loss, paper files also disappear, so paper documents are hardly one hundred per cent safe either. As a last resort, if you really need to use paper, try to make notepads with scratch paper that can be reused. And when printing is absolutely necessary, use both sides of the sheet. There is no question that with a simple change of attitude and a few easy adjustments, many trees will be preserved. As we move further into the digital age, one would think our use of paper would continue to diminish. With many tree-free, eco-friendly alternatives are available like digital cash, Ebooks, E documents etc.,
Paper impacts the environment with tough scar
Worldwide consumption of paper has risen by 400% in the past 40 years leading to an increase in deforestation, with 35% of harvested trees being used for paper manufacture. Most paper companies also plant trees to help regrow forests. Logging of old-growth forests accounts for less than 10% of wood pulp. More than one in five (21%) organizations are still increasing their paper consumption. 10 litres of water are needed to make one piece of A4 paper. Recycling one ton of paper saves around 682.5 gallons of oil, 26,500 litres of water and 17 trees. 50% of businesses waste is composed of paper. The world will anticipate a breakthrough solution to environmental degradation by means of human beings
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