As a financial institution we use a lot of paper in serving our members, marketing to members and the community, and providing administrative and corporate services. The kind of paper we choose and the amounts of paper we use have an impact on the environment.

We've taken the following steps to reduce the environmental impact of our paper use:

• Marketing materials: When it came to time to print new marketing materials for the ‘new’ ACU, we decided to use vegetable-based inks printed on paper supplied by a manufacturer that uses 100% post-consumer, chlorine free recycled paper, and is committed to Green-e renewable energy. We saved 1,300 trees and 224,842 gallons of water in just the first three months.
• Electronic pay statements: We recently replaced paper pay statements with electronic pay statements for all our employees. That means we’ll save printing 10,400 statements per year.

Environmental Paper Savings at ACU

Assiniboine's choices for paper and printing processes have led to environmental savings. Our paper supplier, Neenah Paper, has put together a paper savings calculator using a program developed by the Office of the Federal Environmental Executive - the U.S. Service and Environmental Defence Dept. The calculator evaluates the savings associated with choosing papers with higher levels of post-consumer fibre content.

Neenah Paper Obtains Process Chlorine Free Certification
For Classic® and Environment® Papers

ALPHARETTA, GA. (January 15, 2007) — To meet the highest environmental standards, Neenah Paper has obtained Process Chlorine Free (PCF) certification from the Chlorine Free Products Association (CFPA) for 100 percent post-consumer fiber papers in the CLASSIC® and ENVIRONMENT® Paper brands. The papers are made without chlorine or chlorine compounds, and they can now proudly carry the PCF emblem. Neenah Paper is the first and only premium paper mill to receive this certification.

There is an enormous and growing amount of interest in chlorine free products, driven in part by a 2005 United Nations report stating that two-thirds of the world does not have adequate access to fresh drinking water. In fact, the UN itself has committed to purchasing only PCF-certified copy papers. Using chlorine chemistry produces about 1,000 different chemical compounds known as persistent organic pollutants (POPs), which can contaminate waterways. Thirty of them are the most toxic substances known to man.

“There are different shades of ‘green,’ and Neenah is about the greenest shade of paper you can buy,” says Archie Beaton, Executive Director of the Chlorine Free Products Association. The company runs its water through a sand filtration system, rather than treating it with a lot of chemicals. Sand does a much better job of filtration. And, Neenah Paper is the only company I have ever seen do that. Neenah surpassed our requirements and ranked extremely high on the audit. Its score was 1,175 out of 1,350, which is really awesome.”

CFPA is an independent not-for-profit accreditation/standard setting organization that promotes chlorine free policies, programs and technologies. CFPA has successfully taken the concept of paper recycling to a higher level by introducing the new Processed Chlorine Free (PCF) and Totally Chlorine Free (TCF) certification program, which is the only certification program of its kind in the world.

      
CFPA audits require the following elements: 

• A chain-of-custody for all raw materials.
• A measurement of the impact of the manufacturing process on the environment, i.e., water and energy use.
• No chlorine based chemistry in the making of the product.
• Monitoring of carbon gas releases.
• Reviews of environmental policy and permit compliance, ethical management practices and compliance, financial performance, product stewardship, public information, funding of research and development, and employee recognition.

Once the audit is complete, CFPA determines a ranking on a Sustainability Index (a system of 1,350 points). “Third-party certifications such as those from CFPA demonstrate that the exciting choices Neenah offers are also environmentally unsurpassed,” says Meredith Christiansen, Product Manager for Neenah Paper. “CFPA is an unbiased organization that is forging new ground to verify high environmental standards are being met. It offers a credible way of assuring customers that we’ve met the most rigorous standards.”

About Neenah Paper

Neenah Paper manufactures and distributes a wide range of premium and specialty paper grades, with leading positions in many of its markets and well-known brands such as CLASSIC, ENVIRONMENT, UV/ULTRA II, NEENAH, EAMES™ and other fine brand names. Neenah Paper is a proud consumer of Green Energy and is a U.S. EPA Green Power Partner. Neenah also manufactures many brands carrying the Green-E, Green Seal and Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certifications. For more information, call 1.800.558.5061 and press “5” or visit the web site at www.neenahpaper.com.

Green-e Renewable Energy

Members of the EPA’s Green Power Partnership pledge to replace a portion of their electricity consumption with Green-e certified renewable energy. Neenah Paper has exceeded the minimum purchase requirements of the Green Power Partnership - purchasing over 10 million kilowatt-hours (kWh) of renewable energy annually, and making it one of the largest purchasers of green power in the paper industry.
www.green-e.org
www.epa.gov
www.epa.gov/greenpower
www.resource-solutions.org

FSC Certified
The product line is recognized as coming from ‘well-managed’ forests adhering to strict environmental and socioeconomic standards in accordance with the Forest Stewardship Council. Papers contain a minimum of 20% FSC certified fibers ECF and 80% post-consumer fiber PCF.
www.fsc.org

Chlorine Free
The company meets the Chlorine Free Products Association SMMI PCF certification standards. Processed Chlorine-Free (PCF) paper is manufactured without the use of chlorine, or chlorine derivatives, although recycled content may have originally been bleached. Certification and ranking are subject to annual review.
www.chlorinefreeproducts.org

100% post-consumer recycled fiber
The product is manufactured entirely from recycled materials recovered or diverted from the waste stream.

Green Seal approved
The product meets requirements under either section 1 or section 2:

1. Recycled Content Requirements
The product contains at least 30 % post-consumer materials. Further percentages are calculated and certified based on the fiber weight of the paper and the total weight of the paper.

2. Production Process Requirements
Recovered material used in manufacturing is free from solvents or chemicals blacklisted by the Environmental Protection Agency; neither chlorine nor any of its derivatives were used in the manufacturing of virgin pulp, the processing recovered material, or in the manufacturing of the product itself. Furthermore, the product meets minimum restrictions on concentration levels of lead, cadmium, mercury, and hexavalent chromium.

www.greenseal.org