Paper is at risk and so are the benefits. Without paper mills there is no place for recycled paper to be bought and reprocessed. Mill closures are bad for the US environment. With no entity to manage forests they will not grow and be healthy for future generations. Paper mills play a crucial role in the recycling stream by processing recovered pulp and paper into new products.

No mills. No recycling. No sustainability.

The Future of Paper and Mills – CRISPER modified poplar trees are engineered with the troublesome lignin that is so hard to get out of natural fibers. Perhaps these would become tree farms and still have some environmental value. Yet the good old native forests still need management. Time will tell. 

There are new applications of using nanocellulose in concrete products. Concrete is the 3^rd largest source of industrial air pollution. The use of nanocellulose reduces air pollution, stores carbon, reduces C02 emissions, and makes concrete stronger. What is not to like, but we need trees.

People are at Risk, Paper and Forest Products Economics –  The industry is among the to 10 employers in 43 states with 925,000 direct jobs and 2 million support jobs. It contributes $300 billion in products and services to the US economy and 5% of US Mfg GDP.