3.31.2008 - 06:09pm ET

(CSRwire) NEW YORK, April 1, 2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- A record 56 percent of the paper consumed in the United States was recovered for recycling in 2007, it was announced today by the American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA).

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"Paper recycling is a great American success story," said Patrick J. Moore, chairman and CEO of Smurfit-Stone Container Corporation, an AF&PA member, the world's largest paperboard and paper-based packaging company and one of the world's largest paper recyclers. "Americans already recycle a large percentage of two paper grades, corrugated containers and newspapers, so achieving AF&PA's 60 percent recovery goal by 2012 will require focus on increasing recovery of other grades including printing and writing papers, catalogs, and direct mail, as well as extracting additional fiber from our country's waste stream."

Smurfit-Stone is investing in advanced waste sorting line technology to extract more fiber from the waste stream. This enhanced sort-system technology allows Smurfit-Stone to dig deeper into the municipal solid waste stream to recover more fiber and other recyclables using a series of mechanically separating screens, discs, magnets and air currents to separate various recyclable materials into their base components. Placed at landfills or municipal waste transfer stations, Smurfit-Stone's systems help communities and waste haulers reduce their tipping fees, landfill expansion requirements, and fuel emissions related to waste processing.

Total paper recovery reached 54.3 million tons in 2007, equaling 360 pounds of paper for every man, woman, and child in America. That's enough paper to fill the Empire State Building 100 times.

"As in all areas of environmental progress, we are constantly challenging ourselves to continue to make a positive impact on our natural resources," Moore said. "Given the increasing global demand for recycled fiber, increasing our fiber recovery rate represents a growth opportunity for our company, as well as being good for the environment."

Smurfit-Stone and Paper Industry Facts & Figures

-- Smurfit-Stone achieved a company record by collecting more than 7 million tons of recyclable materials in 2007.

-- The company's recycling operations provide a secure source of fiber for its mill system.

-- Smurfit-Stone's combination of 25 recycling plants and 16 paper mills represents the largest integrated paperboard and packaging system in the industry.

-- Paper recovery in the U.S. has grown by more than 87 percent since 1990.

-- 86 percent of the U.S. population has access to curbside drop-off recycling programs.

-- Each percentage point of paper recovery represents approximately one million tons of fiber, enough to fill more than 14,000 railroad cars.

-- The forest products industry plants 1.7 million new trees every day, contributing to the long-term viability of North American forests.

-- The amount of standing timber in the U.S. has increased by 39 percent since 1952 and by 10 million acres between 1987 and 2002.

Sources: American Forest & Paper Association, Fibre Box Association, Sustainable Forestry Initiative(R), Corrugated Packaging Alliance, Smurfit-Stone.

Smurfit-Stone Container Corporation (Nasdaq: SSCC) is the industry's leading integrated containerboard and corrugated packaging producer and is one of the world's largest paper recyclers. The company is a member of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, the Sustainable Forestry Initiative(R), and the Chicago Climate Exchange. Smurfit-Stone generated revenue of $7.4 billion in 2007, has led the industry in safety every year since 2001, and conducts its business in compliance with the environmental, health, and safety principles of the American Forest & Paper Association.

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