In the Office

Much of the work involved in screen production is office-based. As with any business there are environmental impacts associated with the day-to-day activities of an office. These are usually energy use, transportation, waste generation in particular electronic waste, and water consumption. Screen production offices are no different. Below are suggestions for improving the sustainability of your office.

Paper and scripts

Think before you print – is a hardcopy necessary?
Print documents double sided and where possible reduced.
Set computers and photocopiers to select double-sided printing by default.
When script changes are made, print the affected pages only, if extra scripts may be required print them on demand.
Measure how much paper you are using by tracking your invoices, knowing your impact first can be a powerful motivator for reducing it.
Encourage the electronic use of scripts where appropriate.
Ensure document destruction and paper recycling bins are readily available to all staff.
Purchase paper with at least 30% recycled content and Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Certified.
Wherever possible replace paper based transactions with electronic ones e.g. emailing documents rather than hardcopy or using electronic file sharing.


It is no secret that the screen production industry is a large consumer of paper. There are several estimates of the number of trees it takes to produce 1 tonne of office paper (anywhere from 10-24), however these calculations make many assumptions. What we do know is that the harvesting of trees for fibre at an unsustainable rate, the energy and chemicals used to process fibre, and the disposal of paper in landfill, all impact negatively on the environment. The pulp and paper industry is one of the largest users of energy and emitters of greenhouse gases. Paper is a precious resource, by reducing our consumption, purchasing sustainable paper products that contain recycled content, and recycling, we can support a more sustainable life cycle for paper. If you recycle paper, great, but this action is futile unless there is strong demand for recycled paper products. Close the loop and buy recycled too! In 2008, the BBC committed to purchasing 100% recycled paper, 100% recycled corporate stationary, and promoting smarter printing!
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