In this day and age, even with industrial and individual landscapes going digital, the research and statistics still suggest that over 300 million tons of paper are produced annually, and over 15 billion trees get harvested per year.
Advocating sustainability in the pulp and paper production sector is becoming crucial to our society. As The Paper Excellence Group lays its ambitions:
“We imagine a world with a far lighter environmental footprint. We can imagine one day that we will be net zero carbon at our operating facilities” says Graham Kissack, VP of Environmental, Health & Safety and Communications at Paper Excellence.
Efficient Production Through Sustainable Approach
Paper Excellence has devoted itself to more than a decade of producing operations including the manufacturing of pulp and specialty printing, writing, and packaging paper. It was founded in Canada but has expanded into a multi-national company that can produce over 7 million tons of products annually and input about $3 billion into the Canadian economy.
In supporting the company to achieve environmental and economic sustainability, Paper Excellence develops an innovative approach through production from two forms of energy management: steam and electricity.
“The heartwood of the tree is first converted into dimensional lumber, and we receive the remainder, the residual fibre at the site and we converted that to pulp and paper” elaborates Graham Kissack. In addition to that, the waste bark that comes from the tree is used as a carbon-neutral fuel to generate steam or green electricity, serving the production process of pulp and paper.
VP of Energy and Business Development at Paper Excellence, Carlo Dal Monte explains further, “the steam is used to heat our process to dry our pulp and paper, and the source of the steam is primarily bio-mass.”
Paper Excellence is dedicated to the mission of reducing carbon emissions since 1990 and has achieved over 70% of reduction with this innovative approach, which grants it the financial based opportunity to develop new products, for example, a carbon-neutral grade of paper, SAGE.
Developing Indigenous Communities to Promote Collaborations
Being in British Columbia not only provides Paper Excellence with ample hydroelectric power resources but also presents opportunities to collaborate with indigenous groups more jointly.
As Lana Wilhelm, Manager of Indigenous and Community Relations at Paper Excellence suggests, “good business cannot be developed in our Canadian operation without meaningful engagement with indigenous communities”.
Paper Excellence underlays the equal and mutually beneficial partnerships strictly following the UN declaration, providing indigenous people various opportunities to participate in different aspects of the business chain.
“(Paper Excellence) honours the area in a way that respects our history, and also has an appreciation for the land,” says Wahmeesh, the Elected Chief Councilor for Tseshaht First Nation. Tseshaht First Nation, a group formed to preserve the Tseshaht indigenous community, praises the collaboration in creating training and employment opportunities:
“I believe Paper Excellence is a very important partner, not just in this forestry endeavour, but in a lot of local endeavours with Tseshaht” comments Wayne Hearn, the Forestry Manager for Tseshaht First Nation.
