Our commitment
Our commitment
Responsible practices. Responsible results.
Rolland is committed to being an ecological leader in the pulp and paper industry. We work with our wood fiber suppliers and Canopy to promote ecopaper development, sustainable forest management, endangered forest protection and responsible environmental practices.
Rolland supports pulp and paper production with 30% to 100% post-consumer waste content, and wood fiber not sourced in endangered forests or Intact Forest Landscape locations like Boreal.
The following principles apply to all paper produced by Rolland. Our procurement policy addresses the entire paper lifecycle, and supports principles that result in long-term environmental, social and economic benefits.
Responsible paper production
Virgin fiber for paper production is sourced from well-managed forests, and land management practices are in place to ensure the conservation and protection of natural resources.
Rolland is committed to the implementation of this policy by:
- Involving employees, suppliers, shareholders and customers in the implementation of our paper procurement policy.
- Reporting our policy implementation progress annually.
- Encouraging current suppliers to provide information so their practices can be compared to this policy.
- Establishing benchmarks, timelines, and accountability mechanisms to implement this policy, and reviewing this process annually.
Virgin wood fiber sourcing
Rolland will lead efforts to adopt environmentally and socially responsible practices to ensure virgin fiber used in paper production is sourced from well-managed forests, and that land use choices and management practices contribute to the conservation of natural resources. We will influence our virgin wood fiber suppliers to use environmentally responsible practices.
To conserve Endangered Forests, Intact Forest Landscapes and the Protection of Biodiversity and Ecosystems, Rolland will:
- Assess our virgin fiber usage, and work to eliminate by 2018 sourcing from controversial endangered species habitats and ancient and endangered areas. We will work with our pulp suppliers to phase out controversial sources, and use only FSC virgin fiber from these forest areas.
- Work with Canopy and our suppliers to support collaborative and visionary solutions that protect remaining ancient and endangered forests.
Forest Certification
Where virgin fiber is required, Rolland will give purchasing preference to fiber originating from Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified operations. We will give preference to FSC certified virgin wood fibers not sourced in the Intact Boreal Landscapes for all our paper production. All Rolland mills have held an FSC Chain of Custody certification since 2005.
Illegal Logging
Rolland is committed to working with its wood fiber suppliers and other stakeholders to ensure illegally sourced fibers are not used to manufacture Rolland papers.
Paper production
Recycled content use
Using recycled fiber reduces overall pressure on forests and other important natural resources, especially when fibers from post-consumer waste are used in paper production. That’s why Rolland will:
- Continue to lead in producing paper with high-recycled content.
- Support regulation to improve the infrastructure for paper and fiber recovery. Such measures are essential to continue increasing the recycled content of our papers.
- Maximize the overall production and sales of 100% recycled content papers across all paper grades manufactured by Rolland within 3-5 years.
Pollution prevention
Paper manufacturing is a resource-intensive process that impacts overall environmental quality. That’s why Rolland will:
- Use chlorine-free bleaching technologies.
- Purchase fiber only from suppliers that meet or exceed legal environmental performance requirements for air and water pollution control.
- Monitor and reduce overall emissions by adopting the latest technologies and practices to minimize pollution.
Reduce Carbon Footprint
Recognizing the importance of forests as carbon-rich resources, Rolland will:
- Support initiatives that advance forest conservation by encouraging suppliers to avoid harvesting these carbon-rich areas, and by giving preference to those that use effective strategies to actively reduce their greenhouse gas footprint.
- Maximize the use of other low carbon footprint fiber options such as recycled content and biogas energy.
- Measure and report on carbon footprint for paper production.
- Continue to lead on non-forest fiber derived from renewable energy technologies at all mills (e.g. wind, biogas).
- Increase energy efficiency at mills and report our progress every 3 years.
- Explore other business areas where carbon reduction strategies can be implemented, including improvements in paper basis weights
Increase paper efficiency
Rolland is committed to more efficient paper usage, including efforts to reduce transit, distribution, circulation, and miscellaneous waste. We will promote continuous technical advances in paperweight reduction, and fiber use efficiency to minimize process waste.
Alternative fiber development
With more than 50% of Canadian forests being logged for pulp and paper products, diversifying fiber sources with agricultural residues that are otherwise burned or landfilled alleviates some pressures on our forest ecosystems. Rolland will:
- Support Canopy’s development of agricultural residues and fibers as a commercially viable fiber source for paper, and keep abreast of new advancements and potential opportunities in this area.
- Actively research and develop commercial pulp and paper production from alternative fiber sources where appropriate.
Recognizing, respecting and upholding human rights
Rolland wants our suppliers to respect the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that acknowledges indigenous and rural communities’ legal, customary or user rights to their territories, land and resources. Our suppliers must acknowledge the right of indigenous people and rural communities to give or withhold their Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC) before new logging rights are allocated or plantations are developed. Our suppliers should resolve complaints and conflicts, and remediate human rights violations through a transparent, accountable, and agreeable dispute resolution process.
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