Comments on: Are E-Books Really Green? [INFOGRAPHIC]

By: Energy in an Hour {Infographic} – CleanTechnica: Cleantech innovation news and views

Fri, 20 May 2011 09:27:43 +0000

[…] Are E-Books Really Green? [INFOGRAPHIC] […]

By: Joguslav

Joguslav — Mon, 28 Mar 2011 20:03:00 +0000

much as I like the idea of reducing materials and energy through e-books, I think the above calculations should be re-done to take into account the fact that “a cut tree” is not necessarily equal to the carbon stored in that tree being emitted as CO2. In N-America and Europe in particular, these trees are often replanted and absorb the same amount of CO2, i.e. in a well-managed forest there are no net emissions (machinery fuel use aside) from cutting trees.

Of course, paper can come from destructive logging in, e.g. SE Asia, but this is a different scenario and both should be balanced in the LCA presented in the grahpic

By: Zachary Shahan

Zachary Shahan — Sun, 27 Mar 2011 14:52:59 +0000

i would have liked to see that info as well

By: Phil Gwinn

Phil Gwinn — Sat, 26 Mar 2011 05:22:13 +0000

E-readers are awesome overall. I read on my ipod and the wife reads on her ipad. Before that I read on my palm pilot. It is great to be able to carry dozens of books at a whack.

My only beef is that the cost of eBooks is still very close to that of a paper book. Production costs are about nil. So, all we really need to do is compensate the author for his/her work.

I see a future where publishing houses will become extinct if they cannot get the price of an eBook way below the cost of a paperback. After all, John Q Author can easily market a pdf or epub right from his website…..

By: LauriePB

LauriePB — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 19:07:55 +0000

Can’t make an informed decision about E books, until I see a comparison between the facts shown in the article above, and facts regarding the resources required for E-book manufacturing, expected lifespan, (how many will I need to buy in MY lifetime), and the costs of disposal.

By: Chris

Chris — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 10:53:53 +0000

The only problem with ebooks I’ve found so far is that in an airplane they have to be turned off for taxi, take-off, and landing. On a short flight, this can be more than half the flight! Whereas a book can be open / on from boarding to deplaning.
Can’t wait for the airlines to allow ebook readers in “airplane” mode for the entire time onboard.

By: Shelley

Shelley — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 03:11:10 +0000

Now there are websites that you can lend and borrow digital books for your Kindle or Nook such as Booklending.com.

By: Danielle

Danielle — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 18:31:16 +0000

The other option is to borrow and share your paper books, which are biodegradable. Friends & libraries are great for that!

By: rollo tomasi

rollo tomasi — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 16:30:52 +0000

so nothing about what will happen to the millions of tablets that will be discarded in the future? the tech industry does not have a stellar record of proper disposal or recycling…just ask the kids in east Africa heating up & stomping on old motherboards to get the metal for the family income…

By: Cool Green Morning: Wednesday, March 23 | Cool Green Science: The Conservation Blog of The Nature Conservancy

Wed, 23 Mar 2011 14:05:08 +0000

[…] how green are e-books? According to this infographic, pretty green. […]