Tradeoff between environmental impacts and economic benefits?: A case study of the Finnish and British pulp and paper industries

Due to the increased used paper collection rates in Western Europe, more recycled fibre will be used in the manufacture of paper. This will affect both the environmental and economic performance of the pulp and paper industry. The potential for the increase of the collection rate varies significantly in different countries in western Europe. In some countries the collection rate is already close to 70% (Austria, Germany) and in others it is around 45% (Italy, United Kingdom). With the increased demand for recycled fibre also the collection will increase. When the collection of waste paper is increased something has to be done with the collected paper. Different utilisation modes results in different emission profiles. They also have different economic consequences. In this article the environmental and economic impacts of an increased paper collection rate are studied with three alternative scenarios. These scenarios are drawn using a dynamic material flow modelling such as Joined Time Projection (JTP). The results show, that a clear trade off between harmful environmental impacts and economic benefits exists.