Environmental groups to protest outside local office supply store

Today is National Recycling Day, and several local environmental groups have decided to honor the occasion by protesting outside the Staples office supplies store, 2813 East Third St., across from the College Mall.\nThe Bloomington protest has been organized by the Student Environmental Action Coalition, the Indiana Public Interest Research Group, Heartwood, the Indiana Forest Alliance and American Lands.\nTom Nutile, vice president of public relations for Staples, said, "Staples is committed to the environment."\nBut protesters will try to convince Bloomington consumers that Staples, which operates more than 1,200 stores around the world, should do more to protect and preserve natural resources.\nThe Bloomington protest is one of many demonstrations that will be held across the United States. The Coastal Rainforest Campaign is an environmental group that has coordinated this nationwide "day of action."\nAccording to CRC literature,the protests are to persuade Staples to stop purchasing wood-derived products that have been manufactured from virgin wood and to encourage the purchase of post-consumer, or recycled, paper products.\nNutile said Staples carries 400 products that contain post-consumer content. He said these products account for almost 12 percent of all paper product sales.\nNutile said Staples was not aware of exactly how many of its paper products come from suppliers that log in old growth forests.\nH. Gyde Lund, of the Forest Information Service in Manassas, Va. defines virgin wood, or old growth forest, as an area of forest that is typically more than 200 years old.\nThe Rainforest Action Network estimates that 78 percent of all old growth forests in the world have already been cut down. In the United States more than 96 percent of virgin woodland has been logged, according to the group.\nCRC literature also says "the pulp and paper industry is the largest single consumer in the U.S. and in the world."\nThe campaign has targeted Staples because it is the largest and fastest growing office supplies store in the world. Environmentalists hope that if Staples will stop purchasing paper products that have been manufactured from virgin wood, other, similar retail chains will follow suit.\nFrank Ambrose, of American Lands, said environmental groups pushed a similar initiative in recent years. Public protest campaigns forced several major home improvement stores such as Lowes and Home Depot to stop buying virgin wood products.\nAmbrose said, "Those companies committed to our cause and many smaller companies were quick to follow. We are hoping that if we can convince Staples to stop buying old growth products there will be a similar reaction in the office supplies industry.\n"If the demand for virgin wood lessens, logging companies will have to look elsewhere for their wood. The last of these ancient forests, which are often essential to healthy local ecosystems, will be saved," he said.\nThe demonstration is scheduled to begin around noon in the Staples parking lot and will feature a street theatre and a slide show. Protesters plan on picketing and passing out petitions.