Forestry Industry Sets Sustainability Goals

 

The initiative lays out a set of five specific, challenging sustainability goals for the forest products industry and includes a transparent reporting process structured to hold the industry accountable.

 

The national trade association of the forest products industry represents pulp, paper, packaging and wood products manufacturers, and forest landowners. The forest products industry accounts for about 5 percent of the total U.S. manufacturing gross domestic product and produces about $175 billion in product annually, officials from the group report.

 

Jim Hannan, chairman of the board and CEO and president of Georgia-Pacific LLC, said the initiative will push companies to improve themselves and provide a road map for successful sustainability measures.

 

The goals of the program include increasing paper recovery for the recycling rate to exceed 70 percent, improving the industry’s energy efficiency in purchased energy use by at least 10 percent, and reducing the intensity of greenhouse gas emissions by at least 15 percent, all by 2020.

 

The plan also lays out goals for zero injuries, increasing the amount of fiber procured from certified forest lands or through certified fiber sourcing programs in the United States and working with governments, industry and other stakeholders to promote policies around the globe to reduce illegal logging, according to a statement from the association.

 

In addition to the five goals, the association also pledged to explore ways to reduce water consumption and will look into setting a consumptive use goal in the future.

 

The association reports that the group and its member companies will be held accountable for meeting its goals with an annual, transparent report on paper recovery and a biennial sustainability report.