FORESTRY

Solar panels at Ngodwana Nursery.

ECO-EFFECTIVE INGENUITY

leads the way on Sappi’s decarbonisation journey

At Sappi, the need to shift to a zero-carbon economy is front and centre of our decarbonisation journey and our recently validated science-based targets by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi1) has given us a clear roadmap to reach this objective.

BY SAPPI

When we set our decarbonisation targets in 2020, approval by the SBTi was the gold standard we were reaching for, so when we became only the fifth company in South Africa to have our targets approved it sharpened our focus, ambition and responsibility to decarbonise across our global business.

Our validated target is to reduce Scope 1 and Scope 2 GHG emissions 41.5% per ton of product by 2030 from a 2019 base year. Sappi Limited also commits that 44% of its suppliers in spend will have science-based targets by 2026.

“Realising these plans requires marshalling the expertise and creativity of our people like never before. But it’s a challenge that our teams are embracing with a spirit of eco-effective ingenuity that’s unique to Sappi,” says Dr Tracy

Wessels, group head of sustainability and

investor relations at Sappi Limited.

“Climate change is already affecting every country on every continent through changing weather patterns, rising sea levels and more extreme weather events. As an early supporter of the Paris Agreement, our overarching aim in terms of science-based targets is a clearly defined pathway to future-proof growth.

“With decarbonisation plans in place and investments flowing into emission reduction projects at a number of our mills, there is a lot of momentum across the company. Now with validated science-based emission reduction targets, we have even more precision on our longerterm 2030 targets. Additionally, through our new Scope 3 target, we look forward to advancing collaboration with our value chain partners focused on climate action,” says Dr Wessels.

“This news is also accelerating our efforts to build a thriving world by unlocking the renewable power of wood fibre. Our responsible land and forestry management practices along with our pulp, paper and biomaterials provide value-adding solutions in a carbon-constrained world. Our Research and Development teams are showing that carboncutting breakthroughs in paper science are within reach today and getting even better tomorrow,” she adds.

ACTIONING COMMITMENTS

Our SBTi approved targets are part of Sappi’s much larger global and regional commitments to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In our South African operations, we have prioritised nine of these SDGs and we are making significant strides in also attaining these objectives. In this regard, we are taking SDG17: Partnerships for the Goals to heart as we recognise that by collaborating on a broad range of issues, we can achieve much more than when working alone. We collaborate with a wide range of stakeholders who share our vision of a thriving world.

A GHG inventory is the foundation for companies to understand,

track, report and manage their land-use emissions and removals. A comprehensive GHG inventory can assist companies to identify areas where emissions should be reduced.

Dr Jacob Crous from Sappi Forests is working with the World Resources Institute (WRI) to develop a comprehensive measurement tool. “What isn’t measured cannot be managed. The agriculture, forestry and other land use (AFOLU) sector alone accounts for approximately 25% of human-induced greenhouse gas emissions and that’s why we are collaborating with the WRI to compile a GHG inventory for companies to track their land-related emissions and removals,” says Dr Crous.

In line with our commitment to SDG7: Renewable and Clean Energy and SDG13: Climate Action, we are steadily moving away from the use of fossil fuel and reducing our greenhouse gas emissions. In addition, the researchers and scientists at Sappi Forests are finding innovative, leading-edge ways to overcome the challenges of climate change. • In navigating the challenges of a carbon-constrained world, we are increasing our use of solar power and renewable energy. • Currently, 43.8% of the energy we use in South Africa is renewable, mostly from own black liquor (89.9%). • We are working to reduce our carbon footprint by making process changes, installing Best Available Technology (BAT), reducing purchased energy (electricity and fossil fuel) by increasing our use of renewable energy: an approach that ultimately results in a reduction in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions.

We are doing this in the following ways:

• The recently commissioned Ngodwana Energy is the first biomass project under the South African government’s Renewable Energy

Independent Power Producer Programme (REIPPP). The project uses biomass from Sappi’s Mpumalanga plantations to generate 25MW energy, which is being sold to the national grid, thereby expanding the percentage of renewable energy available on the grid. • Our decarbonisation objectives at the Sappi Saiccor Mill in KwaZulu-

Natal were recently significantly boosted with the installation of the world’s largest sulphite recovery boiler and the conversion of the calcium cooking line to more sustainable magnesium bisulphite technology. This formed part of the R7.7-billion environmental improvement and capacity expansion project where the investment in new technology has increased production by 110 000 tons per annum (from 780 000 to 890 000 tons per annum) but the upgrades allows the Saiccor Mill to use its own wood by-products to minimise its reliance on fossil-based fuels minimising use of external power.

Described as a “closed-loop system”, the application of BAT means fossil fuel emissions will be cut in half, gas emissions will be reduced significantly, water efficiency will be increased and waste-to-landfill reduced. • Our Ngodwana Nursery requires heating for root initiation, faster rooting and improved hedge growth during winter months. Our solution was to install a solar heating system where the heat is collected during the daylight hours by 216 solar evacuated tube systems and stored in an insulated 300m3 water storage tank for reticulation to the nursery’s hot ring main pipe. Water temperatures of 70°C are achieved and the system delivers an average of 4 000kWh per day during winter months.

These are just some of the examples that have been successfully implemented, recognising the role that industry needs to fulfil to be part of the solution in responding to climate change. By reducing our greenhouse gas emissions and scaling up nature-based solutions, we are increasingly part of the solution to climate change.

Our decarbonisation objectives were significantly boosted with a R7.7-billion environmental improvement and capacity expansion project at the Sappi Saiccor Mill.

Ngodwana Energy is the first REIPPP project that uses biomass.

What isn’t measured cannot be managed.

REFERENCES

1 STBi is a collaboration between CDP, the United Nations Global Compact, World Resources Institute (WRI) and the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF).