What is the impact of paper-making itself?

The pulp and paper industry is very energy intensive, requires extremely large amounts of water, and often entails the use of toxic chemicals, of which the most problematic are the chlorine compounds used in bleaching pulp to make bright white paper. Although many companies have become more energy efficient, and even generate some of their own power from the wood wastes associated with the manufacturing process, the U.S. government figures show that pulp and paper manufacturers are the fourth largest industrial emitters of greenhouse gases.[3] Further, the pulp and paper industry releases about 212 million tons of hazardous substances into the air and water -- amounts comparable to the U.S. primary metal industry -- and is ranked as the third largest user of industrial water.[4] These figures highlight the industry’s impact on our environment, despite improvements associated with requirements of the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts and with more general efficiency measures.