Hachette Book Group Releases Environmental Progress Report

(PRESS RELEASE) Hachette Book Group (HBG) is committed to protecting the environment and to the responsible use of natural resources. Accordingly, we have committed to publish this annual report to detail progress toward meeting the goals laid out in our environmental policy.

Reducing Climate Impacts

Our goal is to reduce total greenhouse gas emissions linked to publishing operations (including paper) 20% by 2020 (from our 2008 baseline). We have measured our carbon footprint comprehensively each year since 2008 and emissions in 2010 were down 15% vs. the baseline. It is important to caution that one large bestselling title can cause these numbers to fluctuate significantly and we expect that some years will see increases in emissions, but we expect the long-term trend to meet or exceed the target.

Increasing Certified and Recycled Fiber

Our goal is for at least 20% of our paper to be FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified by 2012. We are pleased to report that we have achieved that goal 2 years ahead of schedule. In 2011, 23% of our paper is FSC certified.

For recycled fiber, we aim to increase recycled fiber use to 30% by 2012, with a majority to be postconsumer. In 2010, 5% of our paper was postconsumer recycled fiber. The scarcity and quality of recycled fiber, and the reduction of de-inking capacity (an essential step in creating recycled fiber for our books) does present a challenge for HBG and for the trade book industry to meeting this goal. However, we are evaluating all of our options and exploring alternate sources of supply.

Protecting Endangered Forests

Our goal in this area is to phase out the use of any controversial sources of paper fiber and require our paper to be free of unacceptable sources as defined by FSC’s controlled wood standard. The primary concern in 2010 was around books produced in Asia that contained pulp sourced from tropical rainforests in Indonesia. We have changed sources of supply as certain mills have demonstrated inconsistencies in their chain of custody. We will continue to monitor our future sources of supply, and to keep close watch on both domestic and international controversies and take action in line with our policy.