The Page: What Will Happen In 2023? (twosides.info)

A comprehensive review of Motions 29 and 36 from the 2014 General Assembly, FSC Global Strategic Plan, and all stakeholder feedback was carried out by FSC and the technical working group during a meeting in February 2016. This review established that in order to adequately address the motions and balance the feedback from the consultation, we need to know more about both consumer understanding of the FSC labels and the potential impacts of these changes on certificate holders. Therefore, we need to take more time to further investigate these aspects. While this research is conducted, we will continue to move forward with improving and streamlining the other components of the standard. We intend to combine the results of our research with other revisions into a second draft of the standard. The second draft will be opened to public consultation by the end of 2016, with the aim to approve and publish the final standard in 2017.

Paper-based packaging provider Smurfit Kappa is celebrating the first annual European Paper Bag day at its Sangüesa Paper Mill in Spain, to promote the use of paper carrier bags as an alternative to plastic bags. The milestone day was created by “The Paper Bag” platform, Europe’s leading association for kraft paper manufacturers and paper bag producers, to educate consumers about the benefits of opting for paper carrier bags. Less than 1 per cent of the plastic bags used every year are recycled. Smurfit Kappa drew on its high quality paper portfolio to produce an efficient alternative for paper bag producers which is strong, performs well in wet conditions and is safe for food contact. To mark European Paper Bag day, the Sangüesa mill cooperated with the Navarra Government by supplying the paper to produce 130,000 paper bags for distribution through local shops, supermarkets and consumers across the Navarra region. Click read more below for additional detail.

American Trucking Associations President and CEO Chris Spear told Congress that the industry needed realistic national timelines and targets to reduce emissions, rather than allowing California and other states to drive standards. “The trucking industry starts with ‘yes,’" Spear testified before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee today. “ATA worked with the Environmental Protection Agency, producing Phases I and II emission reduction rules, as well as the SmartWay Transport Partnership – which has been a model of public-private cooperation. To date, 98.5% of all emissions have been removed from our tailpipes. In fact, 60 trucks today emit what one truck emitted in 1988.” Spear emphasized that those gains, which include reductions of millions of tons of carbon, nitrogen oxide and particulate matter emissions, were the result of collaborative regulatory processes and realistic goals.