Rice University Removes Kleenex Brand Due To Environmentally Destructive Forest Practices : Houston Indymedia

December 14, 2006
Houston, Texas

Houston – Rice University students delivered a four-foot letter to the office of Kimberly-Clark Board Member and Rice Board Trustee, Marc Shapiro. The letter confirmed removal of all Kleenex brand products from the Rice Housing and Dining Department. Students worked with University Administrators to remove the Kleenex brand because the product is produced using trees clearcut from North America’s largest ancient forest, the Boreal.

“The removal of Kimberly-Clark products from our university is a strong indication that the company is not producing an environmentally sound product, ” said Kyle Saari, Rice University student. ”Kimberly-Clark claims to be an environmentally responsible company, but it uses wood pulp that is clearcut from the Boreal to make throwaway products like tissues and toilet paper. Universities can use their purchasing power to demand that Kimberly-Clark use recycled paper and stop wiping out this important forest.”

Kimberly-Clark is the target of University campaigns across the country because of their forest practices that rely on endangered forests like the Boreal Forest of North America.
In April, American University announced its commitment to sustainability by refusing to use Kimberly-Clark products. Skidmore College sent a letter of concern to the company in November. Both institutions asked the makers of Kleenex to drastically increase the amount of recycled content in all products. The most recent removal by Rice University indicates student efforts against Kimberly-Clark are gaining momentum.

“I’m proud to attend Rice University where the campus has shown their commitment to sustainability. I was appalled to discover that KC Board Member and Rice Board Trustee, Marc Shapiro is taking part in destroying one of the last remaining ancient forests. It’s time for Kimberly-Clark to end these types of practices, “said Kyle Saari, Rice University student.

It takes roughly 90 years to grow many of the trees that Kimberly Clark uses to make Kleenex tissues and Scott toilet paper. The majority of these trees come from North American ancient forests, which are more than 10,000 years old. Greenpeace is pressuring Kimberly Clark to stop using wood fiber from ancient -forests, unless the wood has been certified under the Forest Stewardship Council system, which certifies the environmental soundness of the logging operation.

The Boreal forest stretches across North America from Alaska to the Atlantic Ocean, forming part of a “green halo” of forest that encircles the Earth. The Boreal comprises 25 percent of the planet’s remaining ancient forest, and is as important to the planet as the Amazon rainforest. Although most of the Boreal is located in Canada, the United States is the largest consumer of wood products from the Boreal.