A huge number of books are published each year and many of them are given as Christmas gifts. A search for "environment" in Amazon's non-fiction section turns up more than 200,000 titles, not counting any books with "green" or "sustainability" in their titles. But is a book on a green topic still green when the environmental costs of printing are factored in?

Robert Gifford, an environmental psychologist and professor at the University of Victoria, has researched why people make decisions that they know harm the environment for more than 30 years. Gifford took steps to ensure his textbook, Environmental Psychology: Principles and Practice, was greener than the typical school book.

"The first line of my preface for my text book is something like 'May this book be worth the paper it's printed on,' " Gifford says.

He used a smaller font, smaller photographs and narrower margins to trim 50 pages from his book.

One way publishers and book buyers assuage their guilt, Gifford says, is to say that books are recyclable and surplus unsold books are pulped and recycled.

Victoria-based publishing house Brindle & Glass was an early adopter of 100 per cent, post-consumer recycled paper in 2001. At first, says publisher Ruth Linka, few presses were carrying recycled paper, the types of recycled paper were no good for printing or the paper was sold at a premium publishers couldn't afford. Nowadays, recycled paper is a viable solution for publishers of black and white books, she says.

For books loaded with colour pictures, recycled paper isn't widely used because it absorbs too much ink, Linka says. When I reached her, Linka was attending a two-day seminar about e-books, books made for reading on digital devices, something she believes will co-exist with the paper book for years to come. The publishing house has recently switched to e-book copies for reviewers, to cut down on environmental impact and costs.

"We all need to become more open and smarter about how we use electronic media," Linka says. "For something that needs updating a lot, like a text book or a guide book, those should be e-books. But for something that's more static, like a novel, those should be hard copy."

Lynne Van Luven, a publishing instructor and professor at the University of Victoria, loves books. The former newspaper journalist has edited several. Van Luven says she rarely examines a book to see if it's printed on recycled paper, but rather, wants to know if it's worth buying.

"In a way, it's an oxymoron to have a newspaper column, printed on newsprint, about green books," says Van Luven. "Isn't this the dilemma we're all caught in? We want to be green but we also don't want to give up the things we love. I'd be the first one to admit, if you told me that to be green I'd have to stop buying books, that I wouldn't do that."

Bruce Batchelor, former CEO of print-on-demand pioneer Trafford Publishing, says the book industry business model needs to change. It now works on consignment-based sales: Books are printed by publishers and consigned to retailers, who can return them if unsold. A common industry estimate is that 40 to 80 per cent of books are returned and then pulped. If the industry goes to non-returnable sales, as in other retail businesses, unsold copies would be liquidated rather than returned, Batchelor says. Fewer books would be published, shipped and pulped, which he estimates would save more than $300 million — and reduce the need for government subsidies to the publishing industry.

"I look upon the idea of overprinting 100 million books a year as a scandal," Batchelor says.

"This is something that's really easy to turn around . . . if we get a few of the bigger publishers on board. Nobody else sells their products this way. Does a vineyard ever accept its grapes back?"

It's a dilemma that will take time to resolve. In the meatime, if you are planning to give a book about the environment as a gift for Christmas, here are some to consider.

Ed Begley JR.'s Guide to Sustainable Living

By Ed Begley, Jr.; Clarkson Potter; 352 pages; $27.95

Ed Begley Jr. has crafted a winning collection of tips, tricks and information about how to live your life sustainably, focusing on conservation and management of resources in the home. Begley has been an environmentalist for more than 20 years, long before most people ever even thought of recycling, and his knowledge shows through in this book. It's straightforward, and it doesn't waste a lot of time arguing about contentious issues; Begley focuses on reducing the use of resources.

One of the best things about Begley's writing is his use of simple language to get his message across. The book's only downside is that it's very focused on services in the U.S., so certain products mentioned aren't available in Canada, or might make finding a distributor difficult.

The Everyday Activist

By Michael Norton; Pan Macmillan; 192 pages; $19.99

Michael Norton's book is about motivating people to take action and doing it right away. It's a beautifully laid out book that contains mini-profiles of such great motivators as Rosa Parks, an African-American woman who, by refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white passenger, brought attention to the civil rights movement and segregation laws in the U.S, prompting social change.

The book is organized into sections; some contain advice and motivational articles and others discuss questions the reader should ask to help motivate themselves and focus on becoming an everyday activist. It's a good, fast read that leaves you buzzing with enthusiasm between chapters.

The biggest downside is that the book isn't printed on forest stewardship-certified or recycled paper; it's coated, glossy, virgin-fibre paper, printed and bound in England and shipped to Canada. Still, the information is useful.

Ecoholic Home

By Adria Vasil; Vintage Canada; 400 pages; $24.95

Adria Vasil has collected an encyclopedia of green tips, all useful for Canadians. The book is based on Vasil's weekly Ecoholic column in Toronto's NOW magazine, and is the followup to her first book, Ecoholic.

She defines an ecoholic as anyone who is addicted to the planet. After reading this book, it's easy to be: Vasil lays out information on greening your home and lifestyle in an easy-to-read format, complete with fact boxes and a Canadian service directory.

She covers everything from cleaning products to green kitchen renovations and more. Highlights include a resource guide, tips on garbage-free living, and a checklist for having a sustainable home.

The Ecotechnic Future

By John Michael Greer; New Society Publishers; 288 pages; $18.95

In The Ecotechnic Future, John Michael Greer expands on his book on peak oil, The Long Descent, presenting his vision of what might happen to our society as we run out of natural resources.

Greer takes the approach that life won't suddenly end when resources do; rather, he compares our society to others in decline, such as the Roman empire and the Mayan civilization, and does it in an accessible way, using clear comparisons with nature.

Author of a weekly blog, (thearchdruidreport.blog

spot.com), Greer uses his background as a conservationist and historian to envision the future in a way that is both depressing and hopeful. It makes an interesting read, whether or not you agree with his ideas.

The Climate Challenge: 101 Solutions to Global Warming

By Guy Dauncey; New Society Publishers; 320 pages; $24.95

Victoria-based Guy Dauncey, environmentalist, organizer and president of the B.C. Sustainable Energy Association, has taken a motivational and energetic approach toward fighting climate change.

The book presents solutions for individuals, businesses, government and communities. It's written in an accessible way and presents statistics and facts, not just recipes for cleaning products, like some books. In the section titled The Challenge, he clearly presents the threats approaching our civilization and planet, touching on not just carbon dioxide, but methane and black carbon. The book contains a section called How to Talk to a Climate Denier, which is a worthwhile read

The Climate Challenge is one of the books in the Solutions Project, a series that aims to address problems in the world today. Other books include Cancer: 101 Solutions to a Preventable Epidemic and Building an Ark: 101 Solutions to Animal Suffering.

Read Steve Carey's blog at

timescolonist.com/rethink.