Is Paper More Sustainable Than Plastic? (Paper vs Plastic Comparison)

In this guide, we outline whether paper might be more sustainable than plastic, and vice versa.

We compare some of the key factors involved in the production, usage and waste management of each.

 

Summary – Is Paper More Sustainable Than Plastic?

Breaking Down Which Might Be More Sustainable

There’s a few main points to consider when is comes to comparing the sustainability of paper and plastic …

 

1. Sourcing Of Material

Paper tends to come from a renewable resource in wood pulp, and other cellulose fibres

Plastic tends to come from non renewable feedstock in petrochemicals like petroleum and natural gas

Some may question whether we will run out of fossil fuels like oil or natural gas (used as a feedstock for plastic) anytime soon.

 

2. Production

The manufacturing and production of paper products might be far less environmentally friendly than plastic across several environmental indicators

Although there has been a recent push to make paper production more sustainable, it may have a history of significant environmental pollution

Some paper mills have been among the top polluters in the world (in terms of water pollution, air pollution, and more), along with water consumption and energy use

Having said that, plastic as a synthetic material does have an energy footprint to produce, and may also use additives to make

 

3. Transport

Paper tends to do worse at the delivery, transport and packaging stage

Plastic is lighter and also tends to have less of a carbon footprint at this stage

Practically, plastic also has traits such as being waterproof and air tight

 

4. Waste Management (Disposal, & Recycling)

Paper tends to be recycled at higher rates than plastic on average in several countries

Plastic tends to be one of the most littered material types, and might be littered at a higher rate than paper

 

5. Pollution

Plastic pollution in the environment may be a more significant issue than paper pollution in the environment

Plastic also takes far longer to break down in the environment than paper

 

Overall

From an environmental perspective, how sustainable paper and plastic are might depend on the exact environmental indicator you are measuring (greenhouse emissions, energy use, water use, waste generated, etc), and at what stage of the product or material lifecycle you are referring to 

Outside of environmental indicators and measurements of sustainability, paper tends to cost more for businesses and consumers to produce and use

Plastic may present issues to human health in terms of leaching of BPA and other chemicals when used in plastic bottles, containers, etc., plus potential issues with micro and nano plastics

Plastic may also lead to ingestion by, and entanglement for wild life

 

Paper vs Plastic: Comparison

General Sustainability Of Each Material

– What They Are Made Of

Most paper comes from wood pulp

Most plastic comes from petrochemical feedstock, such as crude oil or natural gas

 

– Cost

Usually because paper is more energy intensive in production, it costs more than plastic (bankrate.com)

 

– How Each Is Made

Both paper and plastic involve the use of chemicals and additives at the production stage.

Paper often uses a chemical pulp (to separate lignin from the cellulose fibres), along with other chemicals (bleaches, chlorates, etc.), fillers and additives at various stages.

Plastic also uses chemicals, fillers and additives depending on the type of plastic being made and the properties that it’s being designed to have. 

 

– Energy Use In Manufacturing

Paper appears to use more energy in manufacturing than plastic …

 

Paper bags use almost three times as much energy in the manufacturing process as plastic bags (bankrate.com), and some sources say four times as much energy (reusuablebags.com/science.howstuffworks.com)

 

Worldwide, the pulp and paper industry is the fifth largest consumer of energy, accounting for four percent of the entire world’s energy use (packnetltd.com)

 

In the UK, the paper products sector used almost as much energy as the rubber and plastics sector combined in 2016

 

– Waste During Manufacturing

Paper bags cause more waste in the manufacturing process than plastic bags (bankrate.com)

 

– Air Pollution During Production

Paper production … emits 70 percent more air pollution than the production of plastic bags (Thompson/science.howstuffworks.com)

 

– Greenhouse Gas Emissions During Manufacturing

Some studies indicate paper manufacturing emits 80% more GHGs than plastic (Lilienfield/science.howstuffworks.com)

 

– Water Pollutants During Manufacturing

Making paper bags results in 50 times more water pollutants than making plastic bags (Thompson/science.howstuffworks.com)

 

– Water Consumption During Manufacturing

The production of paper bags uses three times the amount of water it takes to make plastic bags (Lilienfield/science.howstuffworks.com)

 

The pulp and paper industry is the largest single commercial user of water in Canada (packnetltd.com)

 

– Overall Environmental Impact Of Paper Mills

Overall, paper mills are some of the worst polluters in the world (packnetltd.com).

Read more about the environmental impact of paper at wikipedia.org

 

– Weight

Paper weighs 10 times as much as plastic (bankrate.com)

 

– Transportation Footprint

Paper bags … weigh more than plastic; this means transportation requires more energy, adding to their carbon footprint (bbc.com)

 

– Packaging & Delivery 

A company found it could reduce it’s carbon footprint by 70 percent by switching from paper and cardboard packaging to plastic … (technikpackaging.com)

 

– Recycling Rate

Paper has a higher recycling rate in the US at 64.7 percent, compared to plastic which had a recycling rate of 9.1% in 2015 in the US (thebalancesmb.com)

 

– How Many Times Each Can Be Recycled

Both plastic and paper can only be recycled a finite number of times before needing to be downcycled, or sent to landfill, or incinerated. Both lose their economic value and quality after repeated recycling

 

– Ease Of Recycling

Some sources say paper bags are easier to recycle than plastic bags (bankrate.com)

 

– Impact Of Recycling

… recycling paper only halves the environmental impact (technikpackaging.com)

 

– Production Of Waste

Paper bags generate 80 percent more solid waste [than plastic] (Lilienfield/science.howstuffworks.com)

 

– Other Recycling Challenges

Paper recycling can be inefficient, with new paper bags using less fuel than recycled bags.

Furthermore, it takes roughly 91 percent more energy to recycle a pound of paper than a pound of plastic (Milstein/reusablebags.com/science.howstuffworks.com)

 

– Degradation Rate In Landfill

In a dry landfill, paper bags don’t degrade any faster than plastic bags.

In a normal, well-run landfill, paper bags do not biodegrade any faster over at least 40 years than plastic (bankrate.com)

 

– Time To Break Down In Landfills Or In The Environment

Different paper items usually take a week to a few months to break down, where as plastic items take multiple to thousands of years, and some scientists believe plastic never fully goes away (responsiblecapetown.co.za, oceanconservancy.org)

 

– Filling Up Space In Landfill

Paper bags are much bulkier than plastic [bags], so they fill up more landfill space/take up more volume (bankrate.com)

 

– Most Commonly Found Material During Land & Beach Clean Ups

Plastic items are some of the most commonly found items on cleanups, but paper bags can sometimes be found too 

 

– Marine Debris Found In The Ocean & On Beaches

Plastic as a material makes up about 60-80% of all marine debris 

 

– Potential Effects On Humans & Animals

The potential impact of plastic on human health and wild life may be more significant than paper 

 

– Durability Of Paper Items

Paper can get wet, and might tear more easily than other materials. Other materials like plastic, metal, glass etc. might be more durable

 

Plastic vs Paper Bags

– Lifecycle Assessments Of Plastic Bags vs Paper Bags

Plastic bags may have a better environmental impact across a range of eco and human toxicity indicators than paper bags, unless paper bags can be re-used a certain amount of times

 

– Paper vs Plastic Bags Overall Environmental Impact

From bankrate.com:

Plastic bags come out on the right side of the equation on everything except the recycling side

[When choosing between plastic and paper bags …] Neither option is best. The better option is to bring your own 

 

The Sustainability Of Plastic

Read more about the sustainability of plastic in this guide

This guide also outlines some of the overall pros and cons of plastic.

 

Other Factors To Consider

– Just as there are different types of plastic, there are different types of paper.

Each different type of paper can have a different sustainability footprint

 

– Using recycled paper makes a difference to sustainability compared to using paper from virgin resources

 

– Sourcing paper from a sustainably managed forest or tree stock makes a difference in the sustainability of producing and using paper

 

– Paper is made with different additives to control different features of the paper such as it’s size, thickness, and density, what it looks like, it’s printability, how strong it is, and so on.

These things can impact sustainability

 

– Paper can come with ink or printing on it, and it can be bleached.

These things impact sustainability

 

– The waste management systems, facilities and technology in a given country or State make a difference to the sustainability not just of different materials, but different waste items and products (because of how different waste materials and items are processed among the different disposal options at different rates)

 

– How long a paper product or item lasts, or how many times it can be used/re-used before being thrown out, impacts it’s sustainability footprint

 

 

Sources

1. https://www.thebalancesmb.com/paper-recycling-facts-figures-and-information-sources-2877868#targetText=Paper%20Recycling%20Facts%2C%20Figures%20and%20Information%20Sources,-%E2%80%A2%E2%80%A2%E2%80%A2&targetText=Over%2068%20million%20tons%20of,continues%20to%20improve%20over%20time

2. https://www.thebalancesmb.com/plastic-recycling-facts-and-figures-2877886#targetText=The%20recycling%20rate%20of%20various,the%20U.S.%20in%20that%20year

3. https://www.bankrate.com/finance/smart-spending/paper-plastic-whats-environmentally-correct-choice.aspx

4. https://www.bettermeetsreality.com/most-commonly-littered-items-in-society-land-rivers-beaches-oceans/

5. https://www.bettermeetsreality.com/most-common-types-of-waste-found-in-oceans-on-beaches/

6. https://responsiblecapetown.co.za/zero-waste-to-landfill-can-we-do-it/

7. https://oceanconservancy.org/trash-free-seas/outreach-education/

8. https://www.bettermeetsreality.com/potentially-harmful-effects-of-plastic-on-the-environment-wildlife-humans-health-the-economy/

9. https://science.howstuffworks.com/environmental/green-science/paper-plastic1.htm

10. https://www.bbc.com/news/business-47027792#targetText=Despite%20its%20low%20durability%2C%20one,and%201%2C000%20years%20to%20decompose

11. https://www.bettermeetsreality.com/plastic-vs-paper-vs-cotton-vs-other-reusable-bags-comparison-which-is-best/

12. https://www.bettermeetsreality.com/is-plastic-sustainable/

13. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paper

14. http://www.csun.edu/~pjd77408/DrD/resources/Printing/PaperMade.html

15. https://www.bettermeetsreality.com/how-many-times-can-you-recycle-different-materials-plastic-paper-metal-glass-etc/

16. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_impact_of_paper#Air_pollution

17. https://www.packnetltd.com/blog/how-environmentally-friendly-is-corrugated-cardboard/

18. https://www.technikpackaging.com/environmental-impact-packaging-materials/

19. https://www.bettermeetsreality.com/which-sectors-industries-use-the-most-energy-electricity/

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