This report gives an estimate of the air, water, and solid waste pollution generated by developing and existing non-sulfur pulping techniques that are potentially competitive with kraft pulping. Also developed were energy use and needs estimates for these pulping processes. Processes investigated were soda pulping, soda semichemical pulping, soda pulping followed by oxygen delignification, thermomechanical pulping followed by oxygen delignification, oxygen pulping of wood wafers, chlorine dioxide pulping, solvent pulping and the Rapson process. All of the pulping processes considered develop less water pollutants and less total reduced sulfur emissions than does the kraft process. Sulfur dioxide and particulate emissions vary from process to process, some being greater than that expected from kraft and some less. Sulfur dioxide and particulate emissions largely originate from power boilers. Requirements for power produced from power boilers vary considerably between mill types. Some air pollutants presently not inherent to the production of pulp, such as sodium iodide, hydrochloric acid, and carbon monoxide, are potentially emitted from several of the new pulping processes.

January 1979. Includes bibliographical references.