AF&PA Disappointed in EPA’s Final Risk Management Program Rule

Stakeholders from around the world are invited to give feedback on the revised PEFC UK Certification Scheme for Sustainable Forest Management and Trees Outside Forests. Deadline for comments is 6 October. Give your feedback. PEFC UK revised the country’s national forest certification system following the entry into force of the revised 2018 PEFC Sustainable Forest Management standard. The revised system is among the first submitted to PEFC for endorsement to include a Trees Outside Forests (TOF) standard. TOF certification was one of the innovative developments of the 2018 PEFC Sustainable Forest Management standard.

Reducing carbon dioxide emissions, water protection, and using energy more efficiently are key targets of Kotkamills' strategy. In 2020, significant investments were made to improve the mill's energy efficiency. The aim is to complete the big project to reduce the wastewater treatment plant's load and the mill's carbon dioxide emissions by August 2021. Investment projects stretching also into 2022 have been launched. The most significant investments and measures in 2020-2021 have targeted the maintenance and efficiency-Improvements of the Kotkamills paper machine that was commissioned back in the 1950s, as well as the pulp mill modernization projects. In 2020 the old drum washing line of the pulp production was decommissioned and the remaining washers were modernized. This improved the washing line's efficiency, increased the usability, and improved the quality of the pulp produced as well as the energy efficiency. As a result of the modification, the pulp mill's overall electricity consumption dropped by about 10 percent. The project will continue with a significant replacement investment aiming to increase the paper machine's capacity by upgrading the cooking lines end equipment and thus enabling the needed pulp production.

The Zoological Society of London (ZSL) has released the results of its Sustainability Transparency Toolkit, or SPOTT Assessment, that independently gauges the progress of 24 global timber, pulp and paper companies against a range of environmental, social and governance (ESG) indicators. APRIL ranked second of 24 companies, behind Switzerland’s Interholco A.G., with a score of 67.1%, well above the average score for the sector of 37.1%. APRIL’s highest scores were for Sustainability Policy and Leadership, and Deforestation and Biodiversity. Just three of the 24 companies received a ‘Green’ rating, awarded to companies scoring above 66%. Click Read More below for additional information.