(UPM, Helsinki, 20 June 2017 at 15:00 EET) - UPM has taken the first steps to renew its reporting under The European Eco-Management and Audit Scheme (EMAS). Four of the company's mills have this year completed their EMAS Environmental Performance reports with locally relevant information on societal aspects and impacts. The mills are UPM Changshu paper mill in China, UPM Nordland paper mill in Germany, UPM Kaukas paper and pulp mills in Finland and UPM Fray Bentos pulp mill in Uruguay. The company will decide on its future EMAS reporting approach based on the feedback gained from its various internal and external stakeholders and the EMAS organisation.
"We see ourselves as an integral part of the local communities. Being transparent with the environmental information and the impacts of our operations is very important, but we also want to share the societal aspects and impacts with our stakeholders", says Gabriele Wende , Director, Reporting and product stewardship, UPM.
"UPM has integrated responsibility data in its Annual Report already for the last 10 years. While the Annual Report is a great source of corporate-wide information, the detailed local report gives a new dimension to our local value creation", Wende continues.
"By EMAS registration an organisation shows both its willingness and capability to commit to environmental responsibility", says Merja Saarnilehto , Ministerial Adviser, Finnish Ministry of the Environment. "Combining the environmental data with information about locally relevant societal aspects and impacts gives the local stakeholders even a wider overview of company's obligations and commitments. It also points out concrete measures the company has taken to reach them. In this, UPM leads by a good example", Saarnilehto continues.
"Transparent reporting is one of the key elements fostering the added value of EMAS for companies, authorities and citizens. The commitment of UPM to transparently report on its environmental performance for over the last 20 years confirms the company's commitment to conducting an open dialogue with local stakeholders at its EMAS registered sites all over the world," says Hugo-Maria Schally, Head of Unit 'Sustainable Production, Products & Consumption' at DG Environment, European Commission.
"Completing EMAS reporting with societal aspects and impacts is an interesting step to deepen this dialogue. The Commission follows with interest this evolution and its interaction with EMAS reporting", Schally concludes.
UPM pulp and paper mills registered in EMAS soon after the scheme was established in 1995, and has been persistent with registration since. In 2012 and 2013, UPM extended its Corporate EMAS registration to its mills outside Europe, to UPM Fray Bentos pulp mill in Uruguay and to UPM Changshu paper mill in China.
The rest of the paper and pulp mill specific EMAS reports and the corporate environmental statement will be published in the near future on UPM website . The final registration is complete only when the Corporate EMAS registration 2016 has been approved.
Read more on UPM's socio-economic impacts at local level in an article on upmbiofore.com .
For further information please contact: Gabriele Wende, UPM, Director, Reporting and product stewardship, tel. +49 175 1500 705.
UPM, Media Relations Mon-Fri 9:00-16:00 EET tel. +358 40 588 3284 media@upm.com
UPM Through the renewing of the bio and forest industries, UPM is building a sustainable future across six business areas: UPM Biorefining, UPM Energy, UPM Raflatac, UPM Specialty Papers, UPM Paper ENA and UPM Plywood. Our products are made of renewable raw materials and are recyclable. We serve our customers worldwide. The group employs around 19,300 people and its annual sales are approximately EUR 10 billion. UPM shares are listed on NASDAQ OMX Helsinki. UPM - The Biofore Company- www.upm.com
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