Billerud manufactures pulp and paper for packaging from renewable forest raw materials. Strong packaging protects its valuable contents and helps to reduce the environmental burden caused by wastage of damaged products. Billerud is working to reduce energy needs by improving efficiency and today 95% of Billerud’s energy needs are met by biofuel.

FOREST PRODUCTS GOOD FOR THE ENVIRONMENT

Pulp and paper manufacture is regulated by extensive environmental legislation. Manufacture requires a permit under the Swedish Environmental Code. The permit grants the right to carry out production and contains conditions regulating emissions to water and air, as well as noise levels, waste and chemicals management.

The primary work on the environment is carried out locally at the mills. In the past two decades the environmental impacts of the process have been reduced considerably. As well as complying with statutory requirements, the mills also hold environmental certification under ISO 14001. Certification demands a structured, target-driven way of working to gradually reduce the environmental impact of operations. Work on the environment is regularly audited by external auditors. The mills’ suppliers are checked and assessed under ISO 14001. The FSC and PEFC systems for purchasing wood raw materials also check that raw materials suppliers comply with the requirements for sustainable forestry and biodiversity.

All employees have been trained in fundamental environmental issues and are constantly kept informed of environmental work carried out by Billerud. Key staff such as production and maintenance managers receive extra training.

Billerud and the environment

Future challenges

Short term

* Apply to renew environmental permit (Skärblacka)
* Handle weak malodorous gases cost-efficiently (Karlsborg)

Long term

* Further energy efficiency initiatives in stage III of the EU’s emission rights programme 2013
* Phase out fossil fuels entirely
* Use 100%-certified wood

THE IMPORTANT ROLE OF THE FOREST FOR THE CLIMATE

The Swedish Forestry Act of 1903 required replanting. Today fewer trees are felled than the annual growth and Sweden has almost twice as much forest as when the law was first passed.

Carbon dioxide is absorbed in the growing forest through photosynthesis, thus lowering the carbon dioxide content in the atmosphere. Growing forests absorb more carbon dioxide than mature forest. This means that active forestry, responsible thinning and felling while replanting, is better for the climate than a forest that is left alone.

STRICT RULES FOR PURCHASING WOOD

The dominant raw material in Billerud’s processes is wood. Billerud owns no forest land of its own but buys in wood via its wholly-owned subsidiary Billerud Skog. The total volume purchased is approximately 5 400 000 m³ sub a year, about 75% of which is felled in Sweden and 5% each in Norway and in Finland. The remaining proportion, approximately 15% is imported from the Baltic.

Most of the wood is purchased from suppliers who are responsible for felling and transport, but Billerud Skog itself carries out felling and off-road transport on privately owned forest land in Norrbotten and parts of Vasterbotten in northern Sweden. Billerud’s own felling and felling carried out by others is in line with the company’s guidelines for environmental considerations when purchasing wood. The guidelines state that the origin of the wood must be regulated in the contract and that the rights of citizens must not be infringed.

Approximately 42% of the total volume purchased comes from FSC and/or PEFCcertified suppliers, up on last year’s 35%. Internal and external audits are carried out annually to ensure that the company complies with the FSC and PEFC standards.

Billerud’s aim is to constantly increase the amount of certified wood. Billerud Skog currently buys in as much certified wood raw material as is available on the market. However, it takes time for private forest owners to become certified. This is why Billerud has started work aiming to help small private forest owners to gain FSC certification in a process known as umbrella certification. The private landowners who meet the FSC standard can become affiliated to Billerud’s FSC certificate, thus gaining certification.

Billerud has FSC and PEFC traceability certificates covering Gruvön, Skärblacka, Karlsborg and Billerud Skog.

MORE EFFICIENT ENERGY USE

The paper industry is energy-intensive Billerud works actively to improve energy efficiency and makes efforts to greatly reduce dependence on fossil fuels. The aim is to cease using fossil oil in manufacturing processes in the long term.

Turning forest waste into energy

Today Billerud is approximately 60% selfsufficient in electrical energy at full use of capacity. About 95% of the heating energy and internal electricity production is currently based on biofuel from forest raw materials. Energy comes primarily from combustion of the black liquor and bark not used during pulp production, and from external biofuel.

Billerud also helps to meet some of the energy needs of its local communities. The surplus heat from Gruvön and Skärblacka is diverted from the processes to the district heating network, equivalent to the energy content of 16 000 m³ oil.

Efficiency improvements continue

Billerud was part of the Swedish Energy Agency’s energy efficiency programme, PFE, between 2004 and 2009. Here Billerud undertook to invest in electricity saving measures with a repayment period of a maximum of three years and introduced an energy management system. The annual saving was 63 GWh.

Billerud’s energy efficiency improvements are continuing. Work at the mills has moved into a new survey phase, where additional efficiency improvements are being identified and processes fine-tuned. This year’s energy efficiency measures resulted in savings of 11 GWh.

At Beetham too, located in the UK and thereby not part of the PFE project, intensive work is underway on energy efficiency improvements. 2010 saw a new energy saving heat exchanger installed in one water inflow. It is planned that next year three older boilers will be replaced with two new ones, so improving energy efficiency.

CAREFUL CHECKING OF CHEMICALS

Manufacturing uses process chemicals such as sodium hydroxide and sodium chlorate in the cooking and bleaching processes. Different additives and auxiliary chemicals are also used. The cooking chemicals used in the pulp manufacturing process can be recycled more than 10 times.

All the chemicals are checked before use regarding environmental risks, health and safety and product safety. More environmentally friendly chemicals are brought into use as soon as this becomes possible.

In 2010 Billerud concluded its work on registering all chemical substances manufactured in the mills in line with the EU’s new chemicals legislation, REACH, which seeks to protect public health and the environment. Work on safety under the REACH regulations is being implemented and updated safety data sheets for chemicals are being drawn up. Billerud is primarily a user of chemicals, known as a downstream user, and as such has secure procedures for and documentation of how the chemicals are handled at each facility. Current safety data must be checked in terms of area of use and risk of exposure for humans and the environment.

Billerud has worked to adapt its operations to the new legislation jointly with other European pulp and paper mills. Testing, compiling the results and registration have been procured and carried out jointly, saving tens of millions of Swedish kronor.

EMISSION LEVELS STABLE

Production at the mills results in various kinds of emissions, the most important of which are regulated by the mills’ permits from the environmental courts. Billerud is constantly working to reduce emissions, including improving processes and purification methods.

Emissions to air

With one exception, emissions to air were below current criteria at all mills during 2010. The current criteria for dust from the soda recovery boiler were marginally exceeded at Skärblacka.

Water consumption and emissions to water

Producing pulp and paper takes a lot of water. Thanks to good access to large water sources close to its mills, Billerud only uses surface water, in other words water from lakes and watercourses. After use, the surface water is treated in Billerud’s biological treatment plants before being released into the watercourses again. Because Billerud does not use groundwater in its manufacturing processes, there is no significant effect on protected water and wetlands.

Emissions to water remained at the same level as last year in all mills apart from Gruvön. This means that for two years Skärblacka has had record low emissions of phosphorus, which shows that the water purification plant is working satisfactorily and that water purification work is sustainable and stable. Emissions of COD, substances in suspension and nutritive salts from the Gruvön biopurification plant were higher in the second half of 2010. The main cause was a series of disruptions to the biopurification plant itself and upstream in the factory. However, Gruvön had lower emissions to air during 2010. For example, total NOx emissions were the lowest recorded since continuous measurements were introduced.

Incidents during the year

Two oil emission incidents occurred at Gruvön in 2010. In both cases, the leaked oil was almost completely contained and the consequences for the environment were judged to be negligible. However, the incidents were reported to the police and preliminary investigations have commenced.

In 2010 no fines or non-monetary sanctions were imposed on Billerud as a result of breach of environmental legislation.

WASTE LARGELY RECYCLED

Waste from the Swedish pulp mills is dominated by various ash and lime fractions. The largest proportion is green liquor sludge derived from the burning of black liquor in the recovery boiler. Currently most of this sludge goes to Billerud’s own landfill.

Waste is being recycled to an increasingly greater extent. Organic process waste is processed and turned into energy in the mill. Other waste can be used for a variety of purposes. The pure lime fractions are used as soil improvers. Ash from bark burning is used for a range of construction purposes. Non-hazardous waste is sorted and the majority goes for material or energy recovery. Hazardous waste is sent to external recycling companies with the necessary expertise and permits.

MAJOR NEED FOR TRANSPORT

Every day large amounts of wood and other raw materials are transported into the mills. At the same time the finished products are transported out to customers worldwide. Emissions from transport account for a significant proportion of Billerud’s total emissions to air.

Opportunities to significantly improve the transport system are limited for inward transport of wood. For natural reasons, lorries are the only option for transporting wood raw materials and biofuel from the felling areas in the forest. Despite this, Billerud seeks to minimise transport as far as possible, firstly by buying in wood from forests located as close to the mills as possible. Secondly Billerud collaborates with other companies in the sector by exchanging timber. This means that other forestry companies receive raw materials from forests near their mills in exchange for Billerud receiving timber from forests closer to home. This benefits both companies financially thanks to shorter transport distances, while also placing less of a burden on the environment.

The wood Billerud buys in Sweden and the wood bought from Finland and Norway is transported by road and rail. On long journeys, if possible, the transport is switched from road to rail as this is both cheaper and more beneficial to the environment. The wood imported from the Baltic countries, currently about 15%, is transported by boat.

Approximately 75% of outward transport is carried out by rail or boat. For outward transport too, Billerud collaborates with other companies in the industry to make environmental and financial gains. Together with four other forestry industry companies, Billerud is a joint owner of ScandFibre Logistics, a company that optimises rail transport. This is achieved by combining goods wagons loaded with products from different mills at designated nodes before transporting them further, e.g. to Central Europe, and by selling the return transport capacity to other importers.

Billerud has incorporated a requirement in its contracts with road haulage companies to reduce the environmental burden from road transport. This states that the fuel must be environmental class 1 and that drivers must be trained in eco-driving.

In 2010 carbon dioxide emissions from transport amounted to 95 000 tonnes. Of this 39 000 tonnes was from transporting raw materials into the factories and 56 000 tonnes from transporting finished products from the mills.

ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY PRODUCTS

Billerud’s pulp and paper is based on renewable wood raw materials and the products are biodegradable. The production process uses virtually exclusively primary fibre, as primary fibre meets the requirements for what Billerud manufactures – strong and hygienic packaging paper. However, Billerud’s products are recycled to a considerable extent and can be used by other manufacturers to make different types of product where the hygiene and strength requirements are not so stringent.

Billerud’s packaging material reduces the burden on the environment by protecting products such as food, medical instruments and construction materials. If more products reach their users in perfect condition, this leads to less waste of resources and lower emissions of greenhouse gases, by avoiding overproduction and unnecessary transport. Good packaging helps to reduce food waste, for example, which is good for the environment as food production almost always involves a far greater burden on the environment than paper manufacture.

Billerud’s ambition is to be at the forefront on environmentally smart and economically sustainable packaging solutions. Thanks to successful product development Billerud has, for example, produced the packaging paper Billerud FibreForm^®, which with its unique elasticity challenges nonrenewable fossil plastic, so making a major contribution towards reducing the burden on the environment.

PapER VERSUS plastIC

Billerud commissioned the IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute to conduct two case studies comparing:

• Two functionally equal paper and plastic carrier bags based on a complete carbon footprint analysis
• Two functionally equal paper and plastic sacks based on a complete carbon footprint analysis.

Result: Paper is better for the climate than plastic!

From a climate perspective, the paper alternative has a much lower impact than the plastic one, irrespective of the end-of-life scenarios (combustion, material recycling or landfill). The main reason is that paper is made from a renewable resource.