Hand Made Paper

Why Handmade Paper?

To reduce the amount of paper waste generated by offices; To reduce the demand for paper made from wood fibre;

To save our Planet Earth from Global Warming and

Greenhouse Effect and To stop deforestation and to save our forest reserves.

The Facts

To produce 1 tonne of paper from virgin pulp require 17 large trees, which leads to more tree cut and more

deforestation. When forests are cleared, natural habitats are

destroyed or disrupted, species may become extinct and native communities dwelling in the forest areas are impacted. Besides, cutting down old forests leads to a loss of diversity.

Trees also serve a function of soaking up carbon dioxide,

which is one of the main greenhouse gases that accelerates global warming.

The Warning for the Environment

The average office worker throws away 35-50 kg of paper per year. In Singapore, 500,000 tonnes of paper is thrown away every year, and this is equivalent to the destruction of about 8.5 million trees.

The Care for the Environment

There is a growing concern around the globe for preserving our

forest reserves. The "Greenhouse Effect" has led people to

become more alert about the environmental concerns.

It has been seen that, in the recent few years various corporations, communities, government agencies and others are coming forward to promote products and technologies that lead to the preservation of the environment.

Global Benefits of Handmade Papers

The paper-making process uses energy, water and chemicals

and produces wastes. Paper made from recycled fibres or Handmade Paper requires at least 50% less energy and up to 75% less water than making it from virgin fibre. It also produces up to 90% less wastewater and reduces air pollution by 70%.

Advantages Handmade paper

Made with pollution free methods as solar energy is used extensively. Acid free. 100% wood free - most eco-friendly. 100% recycled. Excellent for writing as well as printing. Looks great and fashionable. Our papers can be decorated with flower petals, jute, wool, grass, straw etc. Handmade paper seems to be the perfect thing to have come around

in terms of environment friendliness.

There are no chemicals used in the manufacture of our handmade paper. The paper is solar dried, so no energy wastage. No trees are cut to make paper, but the pulp is used to make the paper is derived from Cotton Fabric Rags, which is 100% eco-friendly and natural. So handmade paper cuts down on pollution, its saves trees (and wildlife) thus contributing to a much healthier environment.

Has higher tearing and double-fold strength as compared to mill made paper.
Fine and elegant Quality.

The Indian paper industry can be divided into four categories:

i)

large-scale (integrated) units - 50,000 tonnes and up per year; medium-scale units - 10,000 to 50,000 tonnes per year; small-scale agro-based units - up to 10,000 tonnes per year; handmade paper units - 60 to 300 tonnes per year.

ii) iii)

iv)

Potential and characteristics of hand-made paper production

Handmade paper units are defined essentially by the fact that their operations are carried out manually with pure cellulosic (or raw) materials to be pulped, mechanical rather than chemical pulping methods would be used. In fact, the existing handmade paper industry relies wholly on secondary resources. There is no theoretical limit to the size of handmade paper units, though in India they are often limited in practice to a production capacity of 300 tonnes per year.

According to the Khadi & Village Industries commission, the combined production of 310 working handmade paper production units in India amounts to some 7000 tonnes per year. This sector produces goods valued at $ 2.5 million with a work force of 5300 persons.

 The

handmade paper industry uses

exclusively non-forest raw

materials. At present, it uses only cellulose-rich materials such as cotton rags and waste paper and waste kraft. This could easily be extended to the use of biomass materials and agricultural residues, some of which can be grown specifically for handmade paper production. Non-wood biomass resources have the additional advantage of being amendable to conversion by environment friendly processes. Some steps have already been initiated in this direction for the utilisation of straws, rice husk and grasses.

Handmade paper production also offers extensive possibilities for in-plant recycling. The paper waste emanating from industries incorporating intensive use of paper can very conveniently be recycled for reuse in the parent industry, often saving costs. Moreover, opportunities exist for

interfacing paper recycling systems with a host of industries involved in,

for example, packaging and printing and other paper products.

In its effort to develop effective systems for small-scale paper

production, Development Alternatives has analysed the performance of the Indian paper industry on all scales. This

analysis has drawn on industry publications and information

concerning technology, trade and production obtained directly from operating units.