Since 2005, the CO2 emissions of the pulp and paper sector have been reduced by 36% and by substituting fossil–based products, the European forest–based industries lower the EU’s total emissions by an estimated 410 Mt CO2 per year. The equivalent of taking 85 million cars – or the entire fleet of vehicles
registered in Germany and Italy – off the road. The 4th edition of REINVEST2050 offers a glimpse of how that is done, through a collection of testimonies from the movers and shakers in pulp and paper.
Today, with the fourth edition of its flagship showcase event on clean manufacturing technologies REINVEST2050, the forest fibre and paper industry presents 15 transformative projects completed over the past two years. These all have in common to have successfully either reduced emission from paper mills or developed products offering alternatives to fossil–based goods, contributing to the greening of the EU economy. Close to 70 innovative cases from the four editions of REINVEST2050 reports since 2017 form now a rich library of good practice for the sector to learn from and build on.
Proportionally to its size, the pulp and paper sector is among the EU’s top investors in projects aiming to align manufacturing with Europe’s ambition to reach net zero CO2 emissions by 2050. Some of these projects are documented in a brochure presented today to the EU Institutions. They have taken place in the midst of an adverse environment for investments in cleantech. Investment decisions have recently been impacted by diverse factors, raising EU carbon prices in the context of a global race for green subsidies, as well as skyrocketing costs for raw materials and energy, and regulatory uncertainty.
Download the brochure REINVEST2050 Advancing the low–carbon innovation in the forest fibre and paper industry.
“The importance of bio–based industries for reaching EU climate and environmental goals is becoming more and more evident. Replacing fossil–based products with bio–based alternatives makes sense environmentally, socially and economically. We need to ensure a stable regulatory environment which encourages investments and innovation in the sector.”
Henna Virkkunen, Member of the European Parliament“We have come a long way over the past few years, but we have even more to offer. What if consumers were empowered to choose a renewable, fossil–free product instead of a fossil–intensive one? It would have a significant and immediate climate mitigation effect. Similarly, our efforts in doing away with fossil combustion should be encouraged and offer a model that could be replicated to other sectors.”
Jori Ringman, Director General Cepi, Confederation of European Paper Industries
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