Category: News

Red Lines for Pulp Mill Finance

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The Environmental Paper Network* (EPN), and BankTrack** today published a short document, Green Paper, Red Lines,  setting out minimum requirements for the pulp and paper industry to avoid harming people and the environment. This document urges banks and investors who consider financially supporting pulp and paper companies to thoroughly check whether these companies are on the right side of these ‘red lines’.

The ‘red lines’, listed in the document, are the absolute minimum requirements for pulp and paper mills, and cover regulatory, social, environmental and corporate issues. Unless pulp and paper mills fulfil these requirements, they are likely to cause unacceptable social and environmental harm.

The standards are absolute minimum requirements. Companies that achieve these standards are not automatically deemed to be operating in a sustainable manner. However, if companies, and financiers providing support to them, cross these red lines, they are highly likely to be the target of campaigns by civil society organisations.

EPN and BankTrack therefore expect financiers to stay clear if their client pulp and paper companies are unable to meet the minimum requirements.

Mandy Haggith, co-ordinator of the Environmental Paper Network’s pulp finance working group, said: “We want banks and other investors to be our allies in helping to transform the pulp and paper industry towards our Global Paper Vision, by focusing finance only where the industry is sustainable. We hope these red lines will be used by banks to avoid projects and companies with a high level of reputational risk due to their negative environmental and social impacts.”

Karen Vermeer, forest and Equator Principles campaigner at BankTrack, said: “We will use the red lines of this document to check the forest policies of private sector banks, and push for more sustainable policies where necessary.”

* EPN is a network of more than 140 non-governmental organisations globally, focussing on pulp and paper sustainability issues across the global supply chain and paper’s life cycle.

** BankTrack is the international tracking, campaigning and NGO support organisation focused on private sector commercial banks and the activities they finance.

Link(s)

Contact

  • Mandy Haggith | | +44 7734235704
  • Karen Vermeer | | +31 24 3249220
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New film: The Future of Paper

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A new film expressing a vision for the future of paper was launched by civil society today in advance of Paper World, the paper industry gathering in Frankfurt, Germany. The film argues that as a global society we need to look at this everyday material with new eyes, and transform the way we use it to achieve a more equitable and sustainable future.

Mandy Haggith of the European Environmental Paper Network (EEPN) said, “We hope that everyone who watches the Future of Paper will value it a bit more and think again about wasteful paper use. Everyone in Europe, North America and China uses paper numerous times every day and yet we mostly take it for granted. This film will help people to make the connection between their own daily consumption and the impacts it has on forests, people, the global climate and water.”

Peter Gerhardt of German NGO denkhausbremen, said, “Current paper consumption in industrialised countries must be reduced dramatically in order to lower the pressure on forests and forest people, who suffer from the impacts of the pulp and paper industry around the world.”

Richard Wainwright of FERN, said “This film urges paper companies to rise to the realistic and achievable challenge of ensuring paper production is never to the detriment of local communities who depend on the forests for their survival.”

The film is the outcome of an international process over the past year, in which more than 140 organisations around the world have endorsed a shared Global Paper Vision. This vision describes a future in which the pulp and paper industry and all governments, financiers and consumer companies associated with the industry, have transformed to achieve sustainable production and consumption.

The film can also be watched on the Youtube Channel of the Environmental Paper Network here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n7e9yEc7FUs

For more information contact:

Mandy Haggith on +44 1571 844020 or +44 7734235704 or [email protected]

 

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Discussion continues on paper vapour – the carbon footprint of paper

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In July 2013, the EEPN published a commissioned discussion paper analysing the carbon footprint of the full lifecycle of paper. It can be found here. There is still time to comment on this paper, and feedback is welcome on it until 31 August 2013.

The paper indicates that if the full impacts of production, use and disposal are taken into account, paper is potentially responsible for more carbon emissions than global aviation. We call these emissions ‘paper vapour’. The EEPN is encouraging comment and discussion on this issue. Please send comments to

You can find out more about paper vapour here.

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New publication: paper efficiency scorecard

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On 9 July 2013, the EEPN has published the results of our assessment of 60 UK organisations’ paper efficiency (media release below).  Read the results in our Paper Efficiency Scorecard.

New scorecard reveals need for action on paper efficiency

NGOs challenge all sectors to improve paper efficiency to reduce carbon footprint

A Paper Efficiency Scorecard (1), published by the European Environmental Paper Network (EEPN) (2) at its ‘Paper Vapour’ event in London today, shows that whilst some UK organisations are making commendable efforts to use paper more efficiently, most of those surveyed need to do much more to address wasteful paper use. New analysis (3), commissioned by the EEPN, of the data available on the carbon footprint of paper, also published today, found that paper contributes more to climate change than previously thought and potentially more than global aviation. The EEPN calls these emissions ‘paper vapour’. It is challenging all sectors to value paper more highly as a resource and to reduce their paper consumption and suggests that particular attention is given to wasteful uses of paper such as ‘throw away’ and ‘disposable’ products, in order to reduce their significant climate impact. Co-ordinator of the EEPN and its ‘Shrink Paper’ project, Mandy Haggith, said: “We all know flying causes significant climate impacts, yet this latest analysis finds that paper’s footprint is actually larger.It has such a significant carbon footprint that paper efficiency should be a central part of any organisation’s climate change policies and action plans.” The Paper Efficiency Scorecard ranks the paper efficiency efforts of 60 of the UK’s largest organisations. It found that some organisations, most notably Marks and Spencer, the Scottish Parliament,The Co-operative Group, Sainsbury’s, the Welsh Government and the Highland Council, have made commendable efforts to improve their paper efficiency. However, many others are not yet addressing how to cut their paper use. The two worst performing sectors were catalogue retailers and utilities. “We applaud those high-flying organisations that are making a genuine effort to use paper more wisely and hope that those in which the concept is yet to hatch will now grasp the full benefits of paper efficiency. By reducing wasteful paper use, organisations around the world can significantly reduce their carbon footprints, as well as their financial costs,” said Haggith. Notes to Editors:

(1) For the Paper Efficiency Scorecard, see http://environmentalpaper.eu/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/paper-efficiency-scorecard-final.pdf

(2) The European Environmental Paper Network (EEPN) is a coalition of 70 non-governmental organisations. For a list of member organisations see: http://environmentalpaper.eu/our-network/our-member-organisations/

(3) For the discussion paper ‘Paper Vapour: the Climate Impact of the Paper Industry’ see http://environmentalpaper.eu/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/paper-vapour-discussion-paper-c.pdf

Contact: Mandy Haggith, Co-ordinator of the EEPN and its ‘Shrink Paper’ project on 07734235 704 Matilda Bradshaw, Communications Manager, ‘Shrink Paper’ project on 07775828634

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Paper Vapour event

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On Tuesday 9 July 2013, the European Environmental Paper Network (EEPN) launched the results of our assessment of the paper efficiency efforts by 60 UK organisations – here.

We also launched a discussion paper about ‘paper vapour’, the climate change impacts of paper production, use and disposal – here.

These publication launches coincide with an EEPN event, held in London, to clarify why paper efficiency needs to be part of every large organisation’s climate change strategy.

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Paper Vapour: highlighting the link between paper and climate change

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It is a little appreciated fact that paper contributes even more to global carbon emissions than aviation. We call these emissions Paper Vapour.

An event in London on 9 July 2013 will highlight the important link between climate change and paper production, use and disposal. The European Environmental Paper Network is hosting the seminar, which will bring together experts on the carbon footprint of paper and life cycle analysis and people from UK organisations who have been taking practical steps to increase paper efficiency, thus driving down their carbon emissions.

The open invitation to the event, with a link for registration, is here.

Find out more about Paper Vapour.

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Paper Efficiency Project ‘PEP’ talk on Packaging

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Our second paper efficiency project webinar, or ‘PEP talk’, is on Wednesday 5 June  2013, at 3pm. If you’d like to register,  contact us. If you missed it you can see it online or download the slides here. There is an accompanying webpage with some signposts to useful resources here. Why not check out our other paper efficiency tools?

Overview

Almost half of Europe’s paper use is accounted for by packaging. While packaging has many useful functions (protection, hygiene, branding, customer information) this utility is often very short-lived. There are therefore great opportunities for increasing efficiency, achieving the same functions with lighter weight and smaller boxes.

This Paper Efficiency Project (PEP) talk will help you to understand the scale of the impacts of packaging use, and some very practical ways to reduce these impacts. It will also challenge the idea that reductions in packaging reduce the opportunities for brand messaging and consumer information. A case study will be presented by the Packaging and Print Technology Manager for Sainsbury’s, one of the UK’s major supermarket chains.

Our research into case studies shows that paper efficiency can lead to increased sales, more customer satisfaction and fewer product breakages, as well as environmental benefits – it’s all about  smart packaging design. To find out more, why not attend our Paper Efficiency Project (PEP) talk on packaging? This is a live online webinar on Wednesday 5 June 2013, 4pm GMT.   If you missed it and would like to watch it or download the slides, please follow this link.

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Paper Efficiency Project ‘PEP’ talk on Paper versus Digital

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Our second paper efficiency project webinar, or ‘PEP talk’, was held on Wednesday 8 May 2013, at 3pm. If you missed it you can see it online or download the slides here. There is an accompanying webpage with some signposts to useful resources here. Why not check out our other paper efficiency tools?

Overview

To reduce the environmental and social impacts and financial costs of paper, many organisations are looking at digital delivery of information. A huge range of paper applications can be replaced by digital alternatives: online newspapers and magazines, ebooks, electronic billing, web banner advertising, digital photography, PDF report downloads and of course emails and computer-based filing systems. But how do the environmental impacts of paper and digital alternatives compare? Is digital greener than paper or does a shift online just displace your footprint, rather than reducing it?

This 40 minute webinar explores comparisons between the impacts of paper and digital applications, review some of the lifecycle studies that have looked at this issue and examine some case studies. We draw some conclusions – including how carbon footprints are less for digital than paper – and offer some signposts.

This Paper Efficiency Project (PEP) talk aims to help you work out how to compare the footprints of your organisation’s choices to print or to work online and to help you to take a systematic approach to identifying the different opportunities that digital and paper media present and offer some signposts for assessing the impacts, particularly the carbon footprint, of the different alternatives.

It includes a recent case study by Penguin Books, presented by Meredith Walsh, which demonstrates what needs to be taken into account in comparing the environmental impacts of paper versus digital applications and an introduction to a method for assessing the carbon footprint of digital alternatives to printed paper products, by Michael Sturges, consultant with Innventia.

To find out more about the paper versus digital debate, see here.

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