by Michael Smith (Veshengro)
Local and central governments are claiming that they are going green and thus are moving away from paper forms, records, etc., and are going digital.
The truth of this, however, has nothing whatsoever with sustainability and going green and concern for the environment but everything with savings in that paper has not be bought in.
The entire issue and claim, as I keep repeating, of paper being bad for the environment is nothing but a lie and a ruse. And when the governments keep talking about it it has nothing whatsoever to do with environmental issues but all with costs.
The less paper they have to buy and printing the more they can save and in the same way they force everyone to use their websites to fill in forms and all that, enabling them to collect all manner of data from us that they would not, otherwise, get.
Paper is not the enemy of the environment and, aside from the fact that it is recyclable, it is made from renewable resources and the great majority of forests the wood of which is made into paper pulp is owned by the paper companies and managed well.
The story that is being circulated time and again of the paper industry and paper users being responsible for the deforestation of the tropical rainforests is a load of, as our Australian cousins would call it, bull dust as the wood of the trees of those forests simply is not suitable for the making of paper.
However, many people fall for this lie and swallow it hook, line and sinker, including government agencies, etc.
On the other hand the fact that governments and businesses are going “digital” for forms and all that is not any environmental concern but monetary savings. Let them not persuade us otherwise.
© 2013
