Corrugated industry extends record of environmental progress

Corrugated industry extends record of environmental progress
<![CDATA[The Corrugated Packaging Alliance (CPA), Itasca, Illinois, has released a new U.S. corrugated industry life-cycle assessment (LCA), showing the corrugated industry’s environmental progress.

Its third LCA report, the CPA says the study measures and documents the cradle-to-cradle environmental impact of corrugated packaging manufactured from 2006 to 2014 through four life-cycle phases: converting, use, pulp and papermaking operations and end-of-life use. The new study builds on the first U.S. corrugated-industry LCA that was released in 2010. 

The full LCA is available for download here: www.corrugated.org/?l=lca. 
 
“The LCA results demonstrate the efforts our mills and converting facilities are making to reduce the industry’s supply chain impact on the environment,” says CPA Executive Director Dennis Colley. “Sustainable forest procurement, along with the high old corrugated containers (OCC) recovery rate provide for a well-balanced system of fiber and supports the sustainability of our industry’s products.”
 
The LCA examined the effects of a 1 kilogram industry-average corrugated product manufactured in 2014 on seven environmental impact indicators: global warming potential (greenhouse gas emissions); eutrophication; acidification; smog; ozone depletion; respiratory effects; and fossil fuel depletion; as well as four inventory indicators: water use; water consumption; renewable energy demand; and nonrenewable energy demand. 
 
The corrugated industry reduced its greenhouse gas emissions by 35 percent between 2006 and 2014, the study shows. The reduction was driven by increased OCC recovery and use of energy generated from renewable, carbon-neutral biomass and decreased overall use of fossil fuels. 
 
The recovery rate for OCC increased from 72 percent in 2006 to 89.5 percent in 2014. As more is recovered, less goes to landfill, thereby reducing methane emissions, the CPA says.
 
Other notable improvements between 2006 and 2014 include a 29 percent reduction in the effects of nutrient releases on receiving waters and soils (eutrophication); a 23 percent reduction in photo-chemical ozone creation; a 21 percent reduction in water use; and a 21 percent reduction in respiratory related effects.
 
The peer-reviewed study, commissioned by the CPA and conducted by the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement, is the third study in a series of industry LCAs. It was conducted in accordance with ISO 14040/44 standards and guidelines for LCA studies.   

The CPA is a corrugated industry initiative, jointly sponsored by the American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA), the Independent Packaging Association (AICC), the Fibre Box Association (FBA) and TAPPI. CPA members include corrugated manufacturers and converters throughout North America.  
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Source: Recycling Today
Corrugated industry extends record of environmental progress
<![CDATA[The Corrugated Packaging Alliance (CPA), Itasca, Illinois, has released a new U.S. corrugated industry life-cycle assessment (LCA), showing the corrugated industry’s environmental progress.Its third LCA report, the CPA says the study measures and documents the cradle-to-cradle environmental impact of corrugated packaging manufactured from 2006 to 2014 through four life-cycle phases: converting, use, pulp and papermaking operations and end-of-life use. The new study builds on the first U.S. corrugated-industry LCA that was released in 2010. The full LCA is available for download here: www.corrugated.org/?l=lca.  “The LCA results demonstrate the efforts our mills and converting facilities are making to reduce the industry’s supply chain impact on the environment,” says CPA Executive Director Dennis Colley. “Sustainable forest procurement, along with the high old corrugated containers (OCC) recovery rate provide for a well-balanced system of fiber and supports the sustainability of our industry’s products.” The LCA examined the effects of a 1 kilogram industry-average corrugated product manufactured in 2014 on seven environmental impact indicators: global warming potential (greenhouse gas emissions); eutrophication; acidification; smog; ozone depletion; respiratory effects; and fossil fuel depletion; as well as four inventory indicators: water use; water consumption; renewable energy demand; and nonrenewable energy demand.  The corrugated industry reduced its greenhouse gas emissions by 35…