Metsä Board, the leading European producer of premium fresh fibre paperboards and part of Metsä Group, has had its emissions reduction targets approved by the Science Based Targets initiative as being consistent with the levels required to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement. The targets, covering greenhouse gas emissions from Metsä Board’s operations, are in line with reductions required to limit global warming to 1.5°C. Metsä Board has committed to reduce by 100% its absolute Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gaz (GHS) emissions by 2030 from a 2016 base year. Scope 1 covers greenhouse gas emissions caused by the company’s own production and Scope 2 refers to purchased energy.
Metsä Board’s target for reducing the emissions from its value chain (Scope 3) also meet the SBTi’s criteria for ambitious value chain goals and are thus in line with current best practices. Metsä Board commits that 70% of its non-fibre suppliers and downstream transportation suppliers by spend will set science based targets by 2024.
The Science Based Targets initiative is a collaboration between the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), the World Resources Institute (WRI), the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), and the United Nations Global Compact (UNGC). It encourages companies to set targets for reducing Greenhouse Gas emissions based on scientific data, in order to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement – to limit global warming to well below 2°C above pre- industrial levels and pursue efforts to limit warming to 1.5°C.
“Last year we announced our new, ambitious sustainability targets for 2030. One of these is to achieve fossil free mills by 2030 with zero fossil CO2 emissions. Now we are making the next big commitment to do our share in reducing the consequences of climate change,” says Mika Joukio, CEO of Metsä Board.
