Environment

This is the view from our factory in Llandysul. Not surprisingly it gives us a sense of the value of the environment we operate in.

Printing has historically been a ‘dirty business’, but modern processes and practices mean giant improvements have been made. Sustainability is now at the heart of operations at Gomer Press.

In 2023 we signed up as a Carbon Balanced Printer, becoming the first printer in Wales to do so.

A print business becomes Certified Carbon Balanced when it has measured its primary carbon emissions and balanced (offset) these impacts through World Land Trust’s global Carbon Balanced projects.

Working with a Carbon Balanced Printer helps to reduce your own carbon impacts as a publisher. To communicate this commitment to your own customer base, the World Land Trust Carbon Balanced logos can proudly be incorporated on the imprint pages of your books. 

World Land Trust Certificates – issued job by job, or on a periodic basis – indicate the amount of CO2 offset as a result of working with a Carbon Balanced Printer. These acknowledgements of your positive action also highlight the area of carbon-rich habitat preserved (see example below)

“The money that is given to the World Land Trust, in my estimation, has more effect on the wild world than almost anything I can think of” Sir David Attenborough, WLT Patron

You can find out more at the World Land Trust  (Carbon Balanced Paper) website.

In late 2019 Gomer completed a major solar installation project, covering an incredible 80% of the main roof area. In total, we installed 668 275w panels which cover an active area of 1102m2. Under optimal conditions the system generates 184kw, which goes a long way towards powering the plant. The anticipated annual yield is 166,000kw, which saves around 81 tonnes in carbon emissions every year. The solar array has a life expectancy of of 45-50 years, so that’s 4000 tons of carbon emissions avoided.

About 25% of our total electricity needs are met by our solar installation. The other 75% is all from renewable energy.

Our modern manufacturing equipment is designed to eliminate many of the damaging processes historically involved in printing. Our presses run with reduced alcohol, and our XL106 is specifically a low energy model, using around 20% less than a conventional press. We are certified with the Forest Stewardship Council® and all our paper – without exception – is sourced from certified sustainable forests so our clients can be confident that printing with us is not costing the earth.

• All hazardous waste is collected by a registered waste carrier in compliance with Hazardous Waste Regulations (2005) the majority is recycled.
• All aluminium printing plates are recycled and run processless without chemical usage.
• All paper waste from production and office paper waste is recycled.

Gomer Press also commit to:
• Ongoing compliance with all relevant national and international standards.
• Training staff to increase environmental awareness.
• Measurement and regular review of material usage.
• Ongoing reduction of the potential pollution hazard from site operations.
• Follow best practice in waste management and recycling.
• Implement energy reduction measures and regular review of energy usage.
• Make energy usage a key factor in investment decisions.

Please contact us for FSC® mixed sources logos if you are printing with us.

If you’d like to see a copy of our FSC certificate click here.

Below is a sample certificate that can be issued when producing carbon balanced books with Gomer Press…