GEON Group partners with The Red Paper Group and PaperlinX, who share our environmental values. The papers we mainly procure, and recommend to our clients, are from sustainable forests. We also recommend recycled paper where possible but typically the paper choice is driven by our customers; we do however play an important advisory role in the decision process. We understand our corporate environmental responsibility. We look internationally for the latest ideas in sustainability and technology to assist with the containment and reduction of waste.

Ours is an industry where we lead by example and at GEON we are proud of our ongoing efforts to protect our people and planet. At GEON Group, we strive continuously to improve our environmental performance. We do this by ensuring we have the programs, practices and resources to help protect and preserve our environment.

We want our vendors, customers and suppliers to know that the environment is important to GEON Group and is something we expect to be important to them as well. Not only do we partner with companies who deliver high quality, consistent services and competitive rates, but also, we will not compromise the safety of our employees or the environment in the process. Some of our major initiatives include:

• Key signatory to the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) initiative of the Printing Industries Association of Australia and the State Governments of NSW and WA
• Recycling all paper waste
• Eliminating the waste water discharges associated with film processing through
  computer to plate technology (which all plants run)
• Water management practices to reduce fountain solution discharges and fitting of
  water saving devices to all taps
• Energy efficient ballasts and light bulbs and use of ‘green’ power
• Using soy based inks
• Recycling all aluminium plates
• Returning of wooden pallets for re-use
• Returning forklift batteries to vendor for recycling
• Employing eco clean systems in all plants – machine wash chemicals are recycled
  for re-use
• Replacing alcohol in the fountain solution
• Using low VOC inks and solvents
• Recommending digital printing for short run products
• Air pollution control devices in plants
• Recycling all toner cartridges through Planet Ark
• Engineering an environmental awareness spirit with employees across the Group
  through a reduce, re-use, recycle culture

FSC CERTIFICATION

Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is an international not-for-profit organisation that has developed principles and criteria to certify forests and, in turn, forest products such as paper to ensure that they are made from responsibly managed forests and that the interests of biodiversity, waterways, wildlife and commerce are considered. Printing and publishing industries present special challenges for using the FSC trademarks on certified paper that in some ways are unique to the sector. Accordingly, the FSC has compiled specific guidelines that direct the proper use of the FSC logo and imprint when producing printed material.

These guidelines can be obtained from the Forest Stewardship Council at
http://www.fsc.org or http://www.fscaustralia.com.au

OUR ENVIRONMENTAL MISSION

GEON is the largest sheet-fed printer in Australia to hold the FSC Certification and is focused on providing clients with paper from certified merchants to complete the FSC Chain of Custody (CoC).

Recognised as one of Australia’s leading quality printers, our corporate citizenship represents our ecological and social responsibility to the local and global environment. To this end, we comply and endeavour to exceed the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) legislated requirements with regard to resources and waste material management. We have an ongoing environmental policy supported by training programs and regular reviews undertaken by external, independent inspectors to ensure compliance to established EPA requirements. 

THE BENEFITS TO OUR CUSTOMERS

As customers of GEON, you can make a conscious decision that will help to ensure that the resources we use in business and industry are part of a scheme that aims to renew and sustain the world’s forests.

By requesting paper that has been produced from FSC certified forests our customers can meet their own environmental objectives without compromising quality. And through our FSC Chain of Custody (CoC) Certification, you will receive the additional benefit of being able to include these logos within your printed material, further reinforcing your own company’s commitment to our environment.

By partnering with us to ensure that the world’s forests remain sustainable and renewed, our clients can join a growing number of organisations around the world that are committed to social responsibility and environmental sustainability. 

THE BENEFITS TO THE ENVIRONMENT

Socially beneficial forest management helps both local people as well as society at large to enjoy long term benefits and also provides strong incentives to indigenous communities to protect and sustain the forests to ensure their successful management into the future.

The FSC certification process aims to champion the rights of workers and local communities around the world, further protecting our environment from unsustainable practise that threaten everyone’s longevity.

The mission of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is to support environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable management of the world’s forests. The main tool to achieve this mission is an international forest certification and product-labelling scheme.

The FSC Logo, the initials FSC and the Forest Stewardship Council are all registered trademarks. It is absolutely essential to FSC’s mission that the authority, integrity and credibility of the trademarks are maintained and that these trademarks become publicly recognised and understood. FSC aims to ensure that the logos and trademarks are used correctly and as widely as possible and GEON supports this mission.

DID YOU KNOW?

70 percent of the paper GEON prints upon is recycled or environmentally friendly and with the recent FSC CoC Certification we can now ensure that the majority of the resources we provide to our customers are directly helping to renew and sustain the world’s forests.

All of the proofs produced by GEON are printed digitally and are chemical free while the toner cartridges from the entire operation are recycled. GEON take’s full responsibility of their unused and wasted paper with streamlined processes in place to ensure 97percent of this material is being recycled.

GEON has recently been awarded the 2006 Environmental Initiative Awards for their Recycling Loop.

All GEON sites are specifically constructed to contain any spillage with installed water efficient equipment and reduced water usage rates resulting in an average reduction from 50 litres per plate to 8 litres.

Over the past ten years, 70 million hectares in more than 80 countries have been FSC certified.

FSC certified stocks

GEON can direct you when specifying the stocks for your marketing or corporate material using FSC certification standards. The following paper merchants also carry the FSC chain of custody certification, and each hold their own FSC certified stocks that will ensure we are all doing what we can for the world’s forests today.

FSC certified papers available from: CPI Paper Group * Spicers Paper * Dalton Paper * Red Paper Group * K.W. Doggett Fine Papers