Czech forest certification system submitted for endorsement

The Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC) is celebrating the international recognition for the Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement (CBFA) at the World Forest Congress now going on in Durban, South Africa. An interactive side event called From Conflict to Collaboration featured a huge 8 by 11-metre floor map of Canada’s boreal forest detailing everything from caribou habitat to the rural communities that rely on the forest sector. Panel members at the event included Mark Hubert, the Vice President of Environmental Leadership at FPAC and Éric Hébert-Daly of the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society. They talked about the global relevance of the CBFA, the world’s largest conservation agreement, which integrates both economic and environmental values.

Building on the sustainability success of paper based packaging and recycling, the American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) today released a new tool, The Design Guidance for Recyclability, a data-driven resource to aid packaging designers and brands in the design and manufacture of packaging to meet recyclability goals. The guide provides data on how certain non-fiber elements, such as coatings and additives, impact the recyclability of paper-based packaging. Key findings include: *Non-fiber elements may present a recycling “challenge” when they slow down the mill’s pulping process, plug screening systems or leave residue on finished paper or paperboard. However, innovations in packaging design and materials, as well as improvements in recycling technology, have made these treatments easier to recycle than historically. *Being a “challenge” does not mean “not recyclable.” Each non-fiber element applied to each kind of packaging was rated by some mills as not a “challenge.” The Design Guidance for Recyclability is available for free download at: afandpa.org/sustainability/design-guidance

Under the collaboration agreement signed between Football club HJK and Kotkamills, a manufacturer of fully recyclable food service board, HJK is aiming to significantly reduce the carbon footprint of its matches in the upcoming season. HJK published in December 2019 its environmental responsibility programme and concrete measures to reduce its carbon footprint. The target is to decrease emissions by 20 percent during 2020 and to compensate the rest of its emissions through EU emissions trading. HJK is aiming for its first teams to be totally carbon neutral by 2025. “The collaboration with Kotkamills is part of HJK’s environmental responsibility programme and a significant advancement in reducing plastic emissions. Beer, soft drinks and coffee are served in 150,000 single-use cups every year at the Bolt Arena. With the help of Kotkamills, we can discontinue the use of plastic mugs and plastic-coated cups,” says HJK CEO Aki Riihilahti.