Industrial hemp is a raw material with an image problem. Until the 1930s, the hemp plant had served for centuries as one of the world's most valuable sources of fiber. It was used for thousands of products, from marine rigging and sails to fine laces. Adventurous settlers traveled west in Conestoga wagons covered with hemp canvas and worked in jeans made from hemp cloth. For more than two centuries, hemp was a valuable cash crop for American farmers.

But industrial hemp, tarred by the reputation of its cousin, was effectively banned in the United States in the 1930s, even though it contains insignificant amounts of THC, the drug found in marijuana. However, it was to be recognized once again for its importance to America. In 1942, with the United States facing a disastrous shortage of wartime fiber, the US government called upon all patriotic farmers to grow "Hemp for Victory." Hundreds of thousands of acres of this versatile plant were grown to supply ou

r armed forces with the raw material for shoelaces, parachutes and marine rigging. Despite its obvious value to our farmers and to our nation's defense, once hostilities ceased, industrial hemp again was banned.

Continuum Hemp paper is made with 50 percent hemp fiber and 50 percent recovered cotton rag, elemental chlorine-free.

Simplelife Books of California has created a resource tool for anyone who buys or cares about paper. "The Simplelife Guide to Tree-Free, Recycled and Certified Papers" delves into the impact wood based papers have on air, water, soil and wild places, as well as the history of papermaking and a world of non-wood alternative paper sources that exist now and have the potential to greatly reduce our dependence on trees for paper. The book addresses the general topic of tree-free, recycled and certified papers, explaining the different fiber categories in separate chapters and offering designers and paper specifies tips on creating more environmentally preferable projects. There is also a detailed resource list of companies and products, as well as a swatch section including 17 different paper samples, printed in four-color process and individualized for handy reference. The book was written by Dan Imhoff, a noted expert on environmental issues. For several years, Imhoff has been the principle author of the ECO section of

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