When using e-books, there is no need to travel to the library or bookstore. The reader transports electronic books in any quantity without increasing the mass when travelling. They are comfortable reading at night and with poor eyesight. They do not use any paper and thus give the impression of sustainability. But how environmentally friendly are e-books really and are they a sustainable alternative to printed books?
Resource consumption in https://electronicbookreadingdevice.com
Printed books require wood, energy, and water, as well as printing inks, to make paper. But the apparently dematerialized world of e-books also consumes a lot of resources. The production of devices requires a wide variety of materials from plastics to rare earth metals. These include critical raw materials such as rare earth which are only available to a limited extent and can come from conflict regions. The extraction of raw materials often takes place under inhumane conditions and with considerable pollution of the environment.
The internet is the third largest consumer of electricity. Downloading electronic books also contributes to energy consumption, although the proportionate energy consumption and power consumption when reading are comparatively low. The reader of e-books depends on the power supply and an Internet connection.
CO2 balance of https://electronicbookreadingdevice.com
The CO2 balance depends on the production of the readers as well as on the user. An e-book reader consumes around 24 kg of CO2 equivalents in its production, whereas a book printed on recycled paper only consumes one kilogram. This means that the use of an e-book reader is only sustainable if you read 25 books a year. In addition, the emissions during the use of the devices must be taken into account. This depends on the origin of the electricity.
When does reading e-books make ecological sense?
On the go in the bus, train, waiting room or swimming pool, an e-book offers advantages. A reader is handy, weighs only about 180 grams and has a capacity for up to 2000 electronic books. To transport so many paper books, you would have to use a small truck. In addition to the advantages of low weight and high space savings, new publications as e-books are available much more quickly than printed books.
Electronic literature makes ecological sense for frequent readers or people who read several books at the same time. For people who read little and would like to use e-books, smartphones, tablets and laptops are suitable from an ecological point of view, because they save the purchase of an additional reader.