Paper industry environmental performance

8 December 2009


European paper makers were the only industrial sector to reduce their emissions under the EU's emissions trading scheme (ETS) between 2007 and 2008, according to trade association Cepi’s latest sustainability report.

Direct CO2 emissions fell by about 6.5% to 37.26 million tonnes last year, according to the report. Indirect emissions were also down. The speciality paper sector, which produces materials for flexible packaging, reduced its carbon footprint by 14%.

Emissions to water continued to decrease. For example, discharges of chemical oxygen demand (COD) fell to 6.29kg/tonne of paper produced. The sector's total water consumption was 220 million/m3. Air emissions were also down, except for NOx.

Primary energy consumption also continued to decrease. About 16% of production costs come from energy use, according to Cepi. The industry has pledged to increase the share of biomass to 56% of primary energy consumption by 2010. In 2008, 54.4% came from biomass.

Paper makers also have a commitment to increase the share of electricity produced on-site through combined heat and power to 96%. The share in 2008 was 94.32%, slightly down from the previous year. The use of recovered paper and non-fibrous materials decreased.

The sector exceeded its 66% recycling target for 2010. Industry residues going to landfill increased slightly to 17.77kg/tonne of paper. But quantities have decreased significantly since 2000. Overall, there is a decoupling between production and environmental impact.




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Cepi



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