Terraskin: Welcome to the Stoneage
by Kara DiCamillo, Newport, Rhode Island on 05. 1.07
The June issue of HOW Magazine (yes, June!) includes a section dedicated to “Truly Green Design.” Within this section we found a cool company, Chameleon Packaging, whose newest venture includes a paper product called Terraskin. But this paper isn’t like others. It’s actually a tree-free paper that’s made from stone. After visiting their hip website, we learned that Terraskin is similar to traditional paper when it comes to printing on it, however, because it’s a fiber-less material it uses 20-30% less ink than conventional papers. It also has the advantage in the fact that it’s water-resistant and tear-resistant. A sample came in HOW and we can attest that it look some tugging to make it rip. It’s also a bit heavier than normal paper but Terraskin does come in various weights so it can be used for anything from shopping bags to menus to gift boxes. No water is used in its production, which is a major concern in the paper industry, and bleach isn’t used either. Because Terraskin is made from minerals, it easily disintegrates back into the Earth. TreeHugger has written about something similar before, called Rock Paper. See John's experience in testing it . ::Terraskin
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I can't help but be a little wary of this. I'm all for trees being used for paper because they are a renewable resource (as long as sustainable harvesting practices are used).
I'd rather see efforts towards making the paper-manufacturing process sustainable and more "green" i.e. using less water and less-nasty chemicals.
Crushing rock is soooo much less energy intensive than making paper right? And paper is made from organic material, your last sentence makes it sounds like it won't disintegrate back to the earth.
"Crushing rock is soooo much less energy intensive than making paper right?"
Actually, that's not so clear. If you can work with rocks mostly in one place, using electric power instead of fossil, you could use less energy than having lots of small and heavy fossil-fuel powered machinery and trucks roaming across a country with all the support infrastructure (lots of works and everything they need). Think lifecycle..
'hip website'- how about about so annoying and absurd that it's painful?
Yes, we tree huggers luv our trees whether in the ground or on the plate - ;-) Is it a comfort with fiber that makes me cringe a little at your discription of rockpaper qualities?
Would cutting paper based on minerals be easy with normal scissors, or would they dull easily?
Would one need special "Rock Paper Scissors"?
C
Chris, I surrender, that joke completely wrecked my brain.
Of course, you're right, too. The print-media industry is going to have real costs associated with cutting tougher, more tear-resistant paper.
The binding industry is going to have increased costs when stitching it into books, and the water-resistant properties may make it necessary to use different (ie. more expensive, less sustainable, or both) adhesives.
And I'm not sure trading farmed trees (no paper pulp comes from old-growth forest) for mines is more ecologically sensitive. It certainly isn't more aesthetic.
The problem with objecting to tree farms for pulp is this: If the land isn't used to grow trees for pulp, the land will be used for more lucrative, non-tree-growing purposes, and then the trees won't exist at all.
Just discovered this page while trying to find more info about TerraSkin. Just bought some soap using it as a wrapper. It seems like TerraSkin is a great replacement for paper product wrapping.
There's a common fallacy when a new technology is created that it has to be a one-to-one replacement for an existing technology, or it's worthless. I see that reflected in some of the above comments. Isn't necessarily so, tho..
I'm using this for a large project. Let it be noted that it is Cradle to Cradle certified. Why is it that everyone that comments on this site are experts in fields they have no knowledge in? This is a great product and a little research proves it true.
Of course, this isn't great for everything, but for the right application it makes sense.
I'm using this for a large project. Let it be noted that it is Cradle to Cradle certified. Why is it that everyone that comments on this site are experts in fields they have no knowledge in? This is a great product and a little research proves it true.
Of course, this isn't great for everything, but for the right application it makes sense.
What experience has anyone had in print production using TerraSkin?
Problems?
Folding, glueing, cutting, drying, washing blankets, ink formutions, mailing, ink jetting, heat set vs non heat set
I noticed the opacity is not great so you would have to use a heavier sheet for better opacity.
Any other observations would be greatly appreciated.
Stone paper is good stuff. We have it for bags, boxes, brochures, banners, sell sheets and... labels! That's right!
To answer some questions on above posts:
It is completely waterproof, oil proof and grease proof
We flood coat it with a white water based ink to make it more opaque, or we can get it in a more dense formulation
It does not fold or glue up well at ALL but we have a process where we laminate it to 100% recycled board so it can be glued, folded, etc..
Dulled with Scissors? Maybe Terraskin but not FiberStone™. FiberStone™ actually 'sharpens' cutting tools!
Cradle to cradle? Well, this is just not true. It is infinitely recyclable into itself and it will breakdown a bit but it does contain 20% HDPE and in a landfill it does what every other material does- sits forever. At NSP (Natural Source Printing) we believe in complete honesty and full disclosure. This is a GREAT product with a low carbon footprint but it isn't perfect. Contact us and we'll tell you all about it. OR to find out more about FiberStone™ stone paper go to www.naturalsourceprinting.com!
Doesn't anyone learn the first law of thermodynamics in high school anymore...electricity is no more sustainable than fossil, If the paper uses 50% less energy that is great but there is very little real published information available on the process...only that it is wonderful...and available for a price... Uh excuse my cynicism.