Achieve 23% reduction in specific water use in water-stressed locations
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Sustainability & Impact
Fresh Facts on Fresh Fibre
Fresh Facts on Fresh FibreLearn how to choose between fresh and recycled fibre for your next project.The Power of Trees
The Power of TreesWhere the power of trees meets the strength of Sappi.Product CoC Claim Options
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Innovation & Collaboration
Sustainable alternatives to plastic
Sustainable alternatives to plasticUsing cellulose and woodfibre from treesPartner with us
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About us
Research and development
Research and developmentWorking on tomorrow’s solutions.2023 Sappi Annual Integrated Report
2023 Sappi Annual Integrated ReportContinually shaping our business.
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Our actions in forests and our mills can combat some of the world’s most pressing social and environmental challenges, especially climate change.
That’s why we act as champions for sustainable forestry—working to keep forestland forested for generations to come. And not just in Sappi forests and plantations, but also in those maintained by our suppliers around the world.
At our mills, we're on a continuous journey to reduce waste and optimise material and resource use at every opportunity. These 'eco-effective' operations help accelerate the transition to the biobased, circular economy our planet demands.
Our PLANET targets
Our PLANET targets
#6 - Clean Water and Sanitation
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Clean Water and Sanitation
#12 - Responsible Consumption and Production
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Responsible Consumption and Production
Achieve 15% reduction in specific landfilled solid waste
#15 - Life on Land
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Life on Land
Greater than 10% improvement in biodiversity in Sappi’s conservation areas
#7 - Affordable and Clean Energy
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Affordable and Clean Energy
Achieve 5% reduction in specific total energy
#13 - Climate Action
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Climate Action
Achieve 18% reduction in specific GHG emissions (scope 1+2 combined)
#17 - Partnerships for the Goals
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Partnerships for the Goals
Build and activate mutually beneficial partnerships
#7 - Affordable and Clean Energy
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Affordable and Clean Energy
Achieve 8% points increase in share of renewable and clean energy
#15 - Life on Land
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Life on Land
Greater than 75% share of certified fibre
Keeping forestland forested
Keeping forestland forested
At Sappi, we act as stewards of forestlands together with our suppliers. Our policies and practices aim to ensure that forests and plantations are expertly tended, harvested and most importantly, regenerated for healthy regrowth.
We practise sustainable forest management on our land because it ensures clean air and water, protects biodiversity, and defends against climate change, amongst many other critical benefits.
We use forest certification to validate our forest management practices and those of our suppliers. With rigorous standards and third-party verification, these systems ensure that forests are well-managed and our use of woodfibre does not jeopardise the forest.
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Forests are the solution
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Forests are the solution
Forests hold solutions for so many pressing global challenges. We need ambitious, collective action to reverse deforestation and forest degradation. In forests and with our fibre-based products, we are working to scale up more nature-based solutions. Read more about why Forests Matter.
Creating value in forests
Forests grow on land that in many regions is increasingly under competition for use in farming, ranching and other land uses. By providing a dependable market for responsibly grown fibre, we encourage landowners to manage their forestland instead of selling it for development or other non-forest uses. This investment keeps forests healthy and continuously growing for generations to come.
Forest growth
European forests grew by 58,390 square kilometres between 2005 and 2020 – that’s an area bigger than Switzerland.
Low deforestation
Deforestation in Canada is among the world’s lowest at 0.02% of its forested area. The key causes of deforestation in Canada are not forestry, but rather urbanisation, agriculture and energy developments.
Forest expansion
Forests expanded in the US from 746 million to 766 million acres (2.6%) between 1990 and 2015. This is equivalent to an average growth rate of 1,660 NFL fields per day.
Rural uplift programmes
In South Africa, Sappi has pioneered programmes that uplift rural areas through sustainable forestry without harvesting indigenous trees.
Enhancing livelihoods and communities
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Our practices ensure far more than healthy forests. They enhance lives and uplift communities by:
- Influencing responsible land-use decisions
- Supporting rural community development
- Providing smallholders with market opportunities and management assistance
- Spurring investment in forestry research
- Promoting biodiversity
- Conserving soil and water resources
Well-managed forests with Sappi also play a vital role in carbon sequestration which prevents and mitigates climate change.
Global 2025 Sappi Targets (FY19 Baseline)
#17 - Partnerships for the Goals
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Partnerships for the Goals
Build and activate mutually beneficial partnerships
#15 - Life on Land
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Life on Land
Greater than 10% improvement in biodiversity in Sappi’s conservation areas
#15 - Life on Land
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Life on Land
Greater than 75% share of certified fibre
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Related Planet Story - Keeping Forests Forested - NA
Related Planet Story - Keeping Forests Forested - NA
North America
Sourcing responsibly from nature
Sourcing responsibly from nature
We responsibly source woodfibre to ensure that the millions of hectares of forestland we rely on remain healthy today AND tomorrow.
We source our woodfibre from well-managed forests and strive to continually increase the share from certified forests. We require all suppliers to provide evidence that woodfibre is at a minimum from controlled and non-controversial sources. We do not accept woodfibre from illegally logged forests or from forests where high conservation values are threatened by management activities.
Our strict Group Woodfibre Procurement Policy ensures rigorous tracing practices and origin documentation for all woodfibre in accordance with the Forest Stewardship Council™ (FSC™ N003159) Controlled Wood Standard, as well as the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC/01-44-43), and in the United States, the Sustainable Forestry Initiative® (SFI®) risk-based Due Diligence systems.
We constantly seek to increase our use of certified wood by supporting landowners and wood suppliers to implement these standards.
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About our Woodfibre Procurement Policy
Our Group Woodfibre Procurement Policy ensures that we source woodfibre that:
- Complies with all applicable legal and regulatory obligations in the countries from which it originates
- Comes from forests that respect the customary, traditional or civil rights of people
- Is procured from forestry and manufacturing operations where health and safety requirements are upheld
- Maintains critical, unique attributes within officially designated high-conservation-value areas where applicable
- Avoids areas knowingly converted from forests to non-forest uses
- Does not come from commercial timber plantations converted from natural forests after 1994, and
- Is not genetically modified.
Tree species identified as endangered by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) are neither utilised nor imported. We comply with the US Lacey Act, EU Timber Regulation, Australian Illegal Logging Prohibition Regulation and other regional legality requirements.
Causing zero deforestation
We neither harvest nor buy woodfibre that originates from tropical natural forests. With our Group Woodfibre Procurement Policy, our sourcing causes zero deforestation because we:
- Know the origin of our woodfibre
- Ensure that suppliers implement practices to promptly regenerate forests post-harvest, which is required under the global forest certification standards that Sappi is committed to uphold, and
- Implement our Group Supplier Code of Conduct to assess supply-chain, ethical and legal risks, and not source from suppliers associated with deforestation.
#17 - Partnerships for the Goals
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Partnerships for the Goals
Build and activate mutually beneficial partnerships
#15 - Life on Land
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Life on Land
Greater than 75% share of certified fibre
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Related Planet Story - Sourcing Responsibly - NA
Related Planet Story - Sourcing Responsibly - NA
North America
Becoming more eco-effective
Becoming more eco-effective
With innovation and ingenuity, we're making our mills eco-effective—reducing waste, emissions and optimising material and resource use at every opportunity.
Transforming woodfibre into the paper products that people rely on every day is an energy-intensive process. With eco-effective actions big and small, Sappi mills worldwide are reducing their environmental footprints and turning waste into new resources. We have ambitious targets and commitments in place and continuously monitor and report our performance.
Together with our partners, we’re accelerating the transition to the low-carbon, circular economy by:
cutting greenhouse gas emissions
integrating more renewable energy
improving energy efficiency
reducing our water consumption, and
reducing waste sent to landfill.
Our culture at Sappi is built to realise the full potential of responsibility in our everyday operations. Our management systems are best in class with expert teams committed to continuous improvement in all aspect of performance. Our many third-party certifications are the proof of our promise.
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Investing in renewable energy
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Black liquor, a byproduct created during pulp production, is a biofuel and the primary renewable fuel source used to generate steam and power in our integrated pulp and paper mills. It’s a great example of how we turn waste into new resources while reducing our reliance on fossil-based fuels. Today, we even sell green electricity from some locations into the local grid. Learn more about black liquor.
Decarbonisation remains a top priority at our mills. We’re working towards further integration of renewable energy and increased energy efficiency to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. To achieve climate neutrality by 2050, we’re co-investigating a range of technologies to radically change today’s pulp and paper-making processes and energy systems. Learn more about decarbonisation with Sappi.
Global 2025 Sappi Targets (FY19 Baseline)
#17 - Partnerships for the Goals
Sust Goal Icon
Partnerships for the Goals
Build and activate mutually beneficial partnerships
#6 - Clean Water and Sanitation
Sust Goal Icon
Clean Water and Sanitation
Achieve 23% reduction in specific water use in water-stressed locations
#7 - Affordable and Clean Energy
Sust Goal Icon
Affordable and Clean Energy
Achieve 5% reduction in specific total energy
#13 - Climate Action
Sust Goal Icon
Climate Action
Achieve 18% reduction in specific GHG emissions (scope 1+2 combined)
#7 - Affordable and Clean Energy
Sust Goal Icon
Affordable and Clean Energy
Achieve 8% points increase in share of renewable and clean energy
#12 - Responsible Consumption and Production
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Responsible Consumption and Production
25 new products launched with defined sustainability benefits
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Related Planet Story - Becoming More Eco-Effective - NA
Related Planet Story - Becoming More Eco-Effective - NA
North America
Working as water stewards
Working as water stewards
We act as responsible stewards of water resources, reducing our water consumption and improving the quality of water we return to the environment.
Water is vital to all life, and especially to our business. Water not only nourishes trees but is used to make pulp and paper, generate steam power and do so much more in our mills. That’s why we take so seriously our role as responsible water stewards in the regions where we live and work.
We're focused on eco-effective actions that can reduce our water consumption and improve the quality of treated water we return to the environment. By collaborating with the communities where we operate, we strive to improve the long-term sustainability of the water resources we all share.
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Water in mills
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- All our mills use and treat water in accordance with comprehensive environmental permits.
- In water-scarce locations, we take extra measures to make consumption more eco-effective.
- In North America, our mills use the elemental chlorine-free (ECF) bleaching process.
- In Europe, all our integrated pulp is totally chlorine-free (TCF). Market pulp is either ECF or TCF.
- In South Africa, our mills use ECF sequences that incorporate ozone and/or oxygen bleaching stages.
Water on land
- Regulating drainage and minimising erosion, which prevents runoff into streams and rivers.
- Planning and constructing roads to prevent erosion and ensure water runoff is not directed straight into rivers.
- Ensuring runoff after harvesting is kept to a minimum, including leaving harvesting residue on the ground and ensuring that the correct harvesting and extraction methods are used.
- Using fertiliser only once in each rotation, and short-lived pesticides that have little or no impact on downstream ecosystems.
- We breed trees for drought resistance and match tree species to the unique water qualities of sites.
- Our plantations require no irrigation at all, using only rainwater and groundwater.
Global 2025 Sappi Targets (FY19 Baseline)
#17 - Partnerships for the Goals
Sust Goal Icon
Partnerships for the Goals
Build and activate mutually beneficial partnerships
#6 - Clean Water and Sanitation
Sust Goal Icon
Clean Water and Sanitation
Achieve 23% reduction in specific water use in water-stressed locations
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Acting on climate change
Acting on climate change
By decarbonising our global business and scaling up nature-based solutions, we’re increasingly part of the solution to climate change.
The world needs urgent action to limit global warming by 1.5 degrees. We’re doing our part at Sappi by harnessing the power of nature’s tools – those in and beyond trees – on a journey to decarbonise our global business. The solutions we co-create with our partners are....png)
And all in ways that contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals and advance us towards the 2030 science-based greenhouse gas reduction targets that we’ve set. Our mills across Europe, North America and Southern Africa are working together on our global decarbonisation journey. No matter the location, it’s the co-creation that powers our progress – bringing together the brilliance of technology, the power of nature and the creativity of people. Learn more about how we co-create for decarbonisation at Sappi.
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How trees fight climate change
Trees capture and store carbon dioxide, one of the greenhouse gases causing climate change. By practicing and promoting sustainable forestry, we work to keep forestland forested for generations to come. In this way, forests can continue serving as the lungs of the planet—providing clean air to breathe and removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.
Watch below to learn more or read our FAQ on climate change.
Climate-smart forestry
In the plantations under our watch, we're pioneering climate-smart forestry practices. From conducting investigations with satellite imagery to planting more resilient hybrid species and implementing fire protection strategies, we're at the front lines in the landscapes where we operate and planting seeds of positive change.
Tracking our progress
We invite you to track our progress with us. We transparently disclose our global and regional emissions annually in our Group Sustainability Report as well as in numerous programmes, including the:
- EU Emissions Trading System
- Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP)
- US Environmental Protection Agency’s Mandatory Reporting Rule
Global 2025 Sappi Targets (FY19 Baseline)
#13 - Climate Action
Sust Goal Icon
Climate Action
Achieve 18% reduction in specific GHG emissions (scope 1+2 combined)
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Related Planet Story - Acting on Climate Change - NA
Related Planet Story - Acting on Climate Change - NA
North America
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