BOSTON (News release) -- Sappi North America, Inc., a leading producer and supplier of diversified paper, packaging products and dissolving wood pulp, on Wednesday released its 2018 Sustainability Report showcasing its industry-leading sustainability efforts. The report highlights the yearly progress toward its long-term sustainability goals through ongoing investments in employees and mills, safety standards, environmental commitments and continued innovation.

"Through investing in our people and our mills, holding ourselves to the highest safety standards, and growing our environmental stewardship, we strengthen the sustainability of our company for the long term," said Mark Gardner, President and CEO, Sappi North America. "We know these commitments create value for our customers, our communities, and our shareholders and we are proud to report the progress achieved in 2018."

Sustainability Achievements

The 2018 highlights include:

• Excellent industrial safety performance with a Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate of 0.35 for the year--the lowest in Sappi North America's history.
• Among the lowest carbon footprints in our sector, with just 0.38 tons of CO₂ generated per ton of product made. In fact, over 75% of our total energy needs are derived from renewable resources like woody biomass.
• 100% of our wood and pulp is sourced in conformance with the Sustainable Forestry Initiative® (SFI) Fiber Standard and 58% is third party certified under either SFI, FSC, PEFC or as part of a certified Point of Harvest program.
• Strong and innovative waste reduction initiatives, including reuse of byproducts to avoid landfill. Looking at pulp mill operations alone, this year we reduced waste by 18 percent from our 2014 baseline.

A New Sustainability Team to Move Sappi North America Forward

"As part of our commitment to excellence in sustainability, Sappi North America has invested in a multi-functional, new team of experts, building on its legacy strengths," said Jennifer Miller, Chief Business Sustainability Officer, Sappi North America. "In 2018, Sandy Taft was appointed Sustainability Director, responsible for setting a comprehensive sustainability strategy supporting business goals; Rebecca Barnard was named Forestry Certification Manager to drive our commitments to responsible sourcing of wood and pulp from sustainably managed forests; and Lynne Palmer was promoted to Manager, Packaging Product Stewardship to implement rigorous protocols to ensure packaging safety and sustainability."

To read more of Sappi North America's 2018 Sustainability Report and learn about its sustainability initiatives, please visit: https://www.sappi.com/sustainability-north-america.