Books in landfills?

As many of you know I just went to my very first conference. I have to say it was a phenomenal experience and one I plan on repeating as money and time allows through the years to come.

However, a hot topic just hit the 'net this morning. And I'm a little flabbergasted that after RWA's existence for so long, nothing is really being done to cure the problem.

Sylvia Day posted an insightful blog today at Romancing The Blog and I have to speak up with her. The basis of this post is that the excess books from conferences, not just RWA's annual biggie, but at many of the conferences are BEING THROWN AWAY. It's a travesty.

For the full picture, please read her post.

One Diva suggested have the Local RWA chapters where the conference is being held step up and help the hotels redistribute the books. Not as a hand to hand, but to help communicate from hotel to needy facilities that the books will be available. Remember the call from the libraries after Katrina? What about the libraries affected by the mid western tornadoes last year? Several communities lost entire buildings of books. There's women's shelters, homeless shelters, even booksellers. They can have them if they will stay in circulation and NOT BE TRASHED! It's such an economical waste for one, the paper is rotting in the landfills, not used as mulch or anything of the sort.

The worst part is the cost involved. Money is spent to print those books. Cost of supplies, paper, ink, people's time. And it is being THROWN AWAY. Where is the cost effectiveness of that? Where is the business plan in "planned waste"?

Speak up at your chapters. Don't let good products be trashed. You may not even read romance, but is this "green thinking"? Purposely counting on having a waste of product is not good for the environment or for the industry.