Librarians
In 1989, authors and publishers came together in support of the "Declaration of Book Preservation". This declaration, a direct answer to the threat to book permanence posed by acid, brought these groups together around their commitment "to use acid-free paper for all first printing of quality hard-cover trade books in order to preserve the printed word and safeguard our cultural heritage for future generations."
Now there is a new threat to the permanence of hardcover first printings—the rise in the prevalence of books published on groundwood papers. Groundwood papers (which do not meet ANSI standards for paper permanence) pose a significant a threat to permanence as acidic paper.
As you know, there is a process that allows for de-acidification of books, however, there is NO process available that allows for the removal of lignin from books printed on groundwood. The only choice is to reprint. With up to 50% of the books on the New York Times and Publishers Weekly bestseller lists (both fiction and non-fiction) now published on groundwood papers, many of the books you are receiving for your libraries are NOT permanent. We believe this must change.