All Facts

How we calculate our own environmental footprint?

The ambition of A Good Company is to have a new positive impact on the environment. Not only do we want to be a responsible company, we also want to inspire change and make other companies and competitors think about their environmental impact. In a perfect world, every company should climate compensate transport, choose environmentally friendly raw materials and package products in a responsible way. 

All facts

When assessing the environmental impact of any manufacturing process, it’s common to look at three main components:

  • What is the total waste water consumption from the manufacturing?
  • How much energy has been used in the manufacturing?
  • What’s the total carbon emissions from the manufacturing and subsequent shipping?

To make it simpler for you to understand how we look at our own environmental footprint and how we benchmark our environmental footprint to that of our competitors, we have decided to convert energy consumption and waste water consumption into a total carbon emission footprint numbers

But how can you convert waste water and energy consumption into a corresponding carbon emission footprint, you may rightly ask yourself? It turns out that there are established scientific ways to do so.

Notebooks calculations

Raw-material
When we compare our own Stone Paper Notebooks with traditional wood-pulp notebooks, we look at the weight of our notebooks, and calculate the corresponding amount of wood-pulp that would be required to produce a traditional paper equivalent. Our estimate is that a ton of of wood-pulp corresponds to 20 trees.

Pulp Paper emission:

  • A4 Pulp Paper Notebook Weight: 139 grams = - 0,28 trees
  • A5 Pulp Paper Notebook Weight: 131 grams =     - 0,26 trees
  • A6x3 Pulp PaperNotebook Weight: 152 grams = - 0,3 trees

Stone Paper emission:

Our Stone Paper Notebooks require no wood-pulp whatsoever. Besides, we compensate every purchase of a Stone Paper Notebook with the planting of 0,7 trees.  Each tree absorbes 22 kg Co2 per year. 



  • A4 Stone Paper Notebook Weight: 139 grams =  + 1 tree
  • A5 Stone Paper Notebook Weight: 131 grams =  +1 tree
  • A6x3 Pulp PaperNotebook Weight: 152 grams = +1 tree

Transportation
At A Good Company we climate compensate all of our transport and shipments, unlike most other e-commerce retailers out there. All of our products are sent to our fulfillment center by boat and we have actively decided to avoid airplane shipment at all cost.

When comparing the environmental impact of our shipments to those of other competing companies, we make two assumptions: that their factories are located at the same places as ours and that they are shipping to the location of our fulfilment center, using the same shipping methods.

We always chose the most environmentally friendly shipment option to get products from our fulfiment center to our customers.

Location used and method

  • Taiwan - Estland, transporation by vessel
  • From Estonia have we calculated of a shipping from our fullfilment center to central London
  • We have used DHL:s calculation tool for Co2 emissions.
  • All packages have had a weight of 1 KG.

Pulp paper emission:

  •     A4: 3,9 KG Co2
  •     A5: 3,8 KG Co2
  •     A6x3: 4 KG Co2


Stone Paper emission:

  •     A4: 0 KG Co2
  •     A5: 0 KG Co2
  •     A6x3: 0 KG Co2


Production
When we assess the environmental impact of our production process, we look at three components:

  • Waste water resulting from production
  • Carbon emissions
  • Energy consumption


Waste water resulting from production
To produce 1 tonnes recycled pulp paper 34.068 litres is needed
To produce 1 tonnes of stone paper 0 water is needed.

To calculate the effect of 1 ton we used this calculator:
1 tonnes paper creates 0.7kg of CO2.

Pulp paper emission          

  • A4: 139 g = 450 litre = -0,022 Co2 KG
  • A5: 131 g  = 447 litre = −0,021 Co2 KG
  • A6x3: 152 g = 455 litre  = -0,023 Co2 KG


Stone Paper

  •  0 water needed


Co2 KG in production
Pulp paper emission
To produce 1 tonnes recylced pulp paper 1431 kg Co2 is needed.

  • A4: 139 g = -19,1 KG
  • A5: 131 g  = -18,7 KG
  • A6x3: 152 g = -21,7 KG

Stone Paper
To produce 1 tonnes Stone Paper 473 kg Co2 is needed.

  • A4: 139 g = -0,63 KG
  • A5: 131 g  = -0,61 KG
  • A6x3: 152 g = 0,71 KG 

Energy consumption
To produce energy is needed. All Stone Paper production is made with 100% solar power.

Energy needed to make 1 tonnes
To produce 1 ton recycled pulp paper 19 315 100 BTU is needed
To produce 1 ton Stone Paper  2 968 563 BTU is needed (869 WAT)

We have converted BTU to Watt with this calculator and from Watt converted that to Co2 KG.

Pulp paper emission

  • A4: 139 g           - 8,3 KG
  • A5: 131 g            - 8,2 KG     
  • A6x3: 152 g         - 9,7 KG

 

Stone Paper emission:

  • A4: 139 g          - 0 kg
  • A5: 131 g           - 0 kg     
  • A6x3: 152 g        - 0 kg


Stone Paper summary:

  • A4: 139 g = - 0,63 kg
  • A5: 131 g  = - 0,6 kg
  • A6x3: 152 g = -0,71 kg  


Pulp Paper Summary:

  • A4: 139 g = -27,4 KG
  • A5: 131 g  = -26,9 KG
  • A6x3: 152 g = -31,4 kg
Natural Pen calculations

Natural Grass Pen is made using only natural meadow grass and recycled BPA-free plastics. We also have a ink refill to enable resuage of the pen.

Traditional pens contains of 100% polystyrene. Polystyrene is a cheap, mass produced plastic. The production of polystyrene releases chlorofluorocarbons (Schwarz, Leisewitz 1999) into the environment- gases that have roughly 1200 times the greenhouse effects of carbon dioxide. Most of these pens, The Bic Pen as one market leading example is not refillable.

Co2 KG emission per second on earth

CO2 per second calculation

  • Calculation: 3.600.000.000.000.0 kg per year (we know it'crazy)
  • / 365 days
  • = 98 630 136 986 KG per day
  • /1440 minutes per day
  • = 68 493 150 KG per minute
  • 60 seconds per minute

= 1 141 552 kg per second (baseline for our calucation)
Source: https://ourworldindata.org/co2-and-other-greenhouse-gas-emissions

 

Consumption of plastic disposables per person per year


  • Calculation: 1 000 000 bottles per minute (that's a lot)
  • x 60 minutes
  • x 24 hours
  • x 365 days
  • = 525 600 000 000 bottles per year
  • /5 000 000 000 every person (over 16 year) in the world

= 105 bottles per person per year (baseline for our calucation) Source: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jun/28/a-million-a-minute-worlds-plastic-bottle-binge-as-dangerous-as-climate-change

  • Calculation: 500 000 000 000 lids manufactured per year 
  • /5 000 000 000 every person (over 16 year) in the world

= 100 lids per person per year (baseline for our calucation) Source: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jun/28/a-million-a-minute-worlds-plastic-bottle-binge-as-dangerous-as-climate-change

 

Mobile Case calculations

Weight: 35 gram is separated of phone case:  20 gram, packaging 15 gram = 35 grams

100% Solar Power and hydro power

0% waste water