Setra’s sustainability work

Our responsibility and contribution to sustainable development

Our work for a sustainable Setra involves creating value through a climate-smart portfolio and taking full responsibility for the impact that our business has on individuals, society and the environment.

Grönsamhet is to be a feature of everything Setra does, which entails incorporating financial, social and environmental perspectives into the operation and development of our business. The starting point is to minimise the negative impact and maximise value creation and positive effects in every link of the value chain from raw material production in the forest to use of the end product. We focus on the areas where we have the greatest influence and an opportunity to make a difference.

More information about the analysis behind our priorities is available on page 44. We likewise strive to develop in step with the world around us, and in line with the demands and expectations placed on us as a company. That is why we manage our sustainability work in such a way as to contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals and Agenda 2030. We are striving to become climate neutral by 2030.

Sustainability on the global agenda

We are facing major shared challenges in achieving sustainable societal development, where everyone on the planet is granted the opportunity to live a good life within the limits of what the planet can provide. With awareness growing worldwide and the effects of climate change becoming ever-more tangible, sustainability issues have acquired a prominent position on the societal agenda, including for many of our stakeholders. Expectations regarding Setra’s contribution to climate work and our willingness to take responsibility have risen steeply over the past year. We are noting how customers and owners are making clearer demands on us, and how both knowledge and awareness have increased appreciably among our employees and society as a whole.

Some global trends of particular significance to Setra’s business and sustainability work

●  Greater interest in wood as a

construction material

The global construction industry is responsible for huge emissions of greenhouse gases, while demand for new housing is increasing in step with population growth and urbanisation. According to the UN environmental programme UNEP, construction materials account for 10 percent of global carbon emissions. UNEP states that the building and construction industry needs to halve its emissions by 2030. As a result, there is great and growing interest in reducing the climate impact of the construction industry, both in Sweden and globally. Given that wood generates substantially less climate impact than steel and concrete, it has a key role to play in the transition. Industrially manufactured structures in Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT) make it possible to build effectively with wood on a large scale. Wood has thus become a viable alternative to steel and concrete, even in large buildings such as apartment blocks.

In Sweden, the government has decided that construction with wood is to be encouraged and is preparing to introduce new legislation concerning climate declarations for buildings. Figures from Statistics Sweden show that the share of apartment blocks built with a timber frame rose from 13 to 20 percent between 2018 and 2019.

The domestic production capacity of CLT that has now been built up – at the Setra factory in Långshyttan, for example – will allow this development to continue.

● Focus on climate and bioeconomy Global greenhouse gas emissions need to be cut back rapidly if the 1.5 degree target in the Paris Agreement is to be achieved. Sweden has the stated aim of becoming the first fossil-free welfare state in the world, with a target of zero net emissions by no later than 2045.

Many industries, including the forestry industry, have submitted a “Fossil-free roadmap” proposal to the government. The plan for the forestry industry highlights the role of the sector in replacing fossil fuels and materials with bio-based alternatives, as well as in capturing carbon in forests and wood products, and sets out an undertaking to reduce its own use of fossil energy.

The EU roadmap for a sustainable economy and a climate-neutral Europe in 2050 – the green deal – is also powering development in our industry. The focus of the roadmap is on efficient utilisation of resources through transition to fossil-free solutions and circular economy, in parallel with measures to restore lost biodiversity and cut pollution.

● Debate about biological diversity The loss of species and the impoverishment of the ecosystem services on which we humans are so dependent pose a serious and increasing threat to our future. The tone of discussions about sustainable forestry has sharpened in recent years. It is vital to ensure long-term sustainable forestry that nurtures biodiversity and simultaneously allows climate-friendly development of our society with unchanged welfare.

●  Make the best use of forest resources Sweden is a world-leading nation in industrial forestry research. Wood as a raw material can already be used to make everything from clothes to packaging. Renewable fuels made from bioproducts constitute an area where demand is forecast to rise in the future.

New applications and increased demand for both raw materials and other benefits from the forest are making the issue of values and priorities more important than ever. Debate is also ongoing regarding the EU’s new taxonomy on the climate and environmental performance of biofuels.

Our contribution to Agenda 2030

2015 saw the adoption of Agenda 2030, the world’s collective plan for sustainable development. The agenda comprises 17 sustainable development goals and 169 sub-goals that balance financial, social and environmental perspectives, and which are to be achieved by 2030. Setra supports the agenda in its entirety and is aware that, through our business, we have the capacity to make an active contribution to several of the goals. The most important factor is the climate benefit of our products, but our responsibility as an employer, supplier, partner and local community actor also comes into play.