Congressional Record Now Printed on 100 Percent Recycled Paper
The Speaker was presented with a copy of the Congressional Record by the Government Printing Office (GPO) Public Printer Bob Tapella:
By printing the Congressional Record on 100% recycled paper, GPO will:
Save approximately 8,100 trees a yearConserve 1,800,000 gallons of water a year
Support private industries initiatives to develop new technologies associated with renewable resources
Reduce approximately 1,400,000 pounds of greenhouse gases a year
As recently as 1995, GPO printed about 15,000 copies of the Congressional Record every day but after putting it online, printed copies have steadily decreased with about 8,000 printed daily in 2000 and only about 4,100 copies currently. You can read the Congressional Record online and learn more about its history and purpose on Thomas>>
Speaker Pelosi shared her reflections on the Congressional Record:
I say this with personal pride today and with my own personal story. When I was born, my father was a Member of Congress from Maryland. And I remember as a little tiny girl and then growing up that my mother used to have the Congressional Records under my brother's bed. My father said, 'I need the Congressional Record the day we had the debate on such and such,' because she had a whole system. I had five older brothers and they used to jump on the beds and break the springs but the Congressional Record was there, and it was not only our library, but a way to have the beds be more sound.That was really a very long time ago, but I always remember this because nobody I know had a library of Congressional Record statements under their brothers' beds and could read about any subject at any time. And now to be here today in the Speaker's office when we are taking such a revolutionary step in making the Congressional Record all on recycled paper it is an official as well as a personal privilege for me.