Biofore-Magazine-2021

By Suvi Pietarinen Photography UPM

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FEATURE

OP INION

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F inlandhas always livedoff its forests. The forests have pro vided the building materials for our homes and the game and lingonberries for our tables. They also provide us with wood pulp – a valuable resource that has brought wealth to Finland. Growing up in south-eastern Finland, an important region for the pulp and paper industry, I saw first-hand how this wealth benefited entire communities. But the forestry industry has also faced criticism. In the past, I often heard complaints about how the industry destroyed for ests and looked at trees as a source for pulp and nothing more. About how themills polluted thewaterways, destroyed fishhabi

tats, and was generally not considered an in dustrywithmuchopportunity.Wehave come a long way since then. Today, the industry has emerged as a role model for sustainable operations. In my hometown, we regularly see salmon in the river alongside the pulp and paper mills, swimming upstream to spawn. The Nordic model of sustainable forest management is being talked about around the world. Through a process of continuous learning, we have understood that not every practice suits every environment. The new genera

Today, the industry has emerged as a role model of sustainable operations.

The plant is expected to be up and running by the end of 2022.

tion of forest owners and industry players concern themselves not merely withwood pulp production statistics, but with taking a 360-degree view of healthy and ethical forest management. From soil nourishment to looking after the fungi present in root systems, no effort is being spared to ensure the well-being of trees. Biodiversity is at the heart of the industry’s operations, and it plays a key role in improving the growth and health of trees. For instance, planting both hardwood and softwood in the same place promotes the healthy growth of the trees while en suring the presence of versatile flora and fauna, helping to keep pests in check. This intricate network meets the various needs for forest usage through sustainable sourcing of raw material, helping strike a perfect balance. Nurturing nature’s biodiversity is going to be critical in the coming years as the world tries tomove towards a future beyond fossils. No other material is as versatile and as sustainable as wood. Did you know that birch bark, which protects a tree from ultraviolet radiation, is also a source of xylitol, a chemical that helps protect tooth enamel? Or that at our biorefinery that is un der construction in Leuna, Germany, wood-based chemicals are made to replace fossil fuels? For example, lignin strengthens the composition of automotive materials and plywood in the same way that it helps bind cellulose fibres together in a tree. The po tential is endless. For us to uncover and make full use of the versatility of wood, we need to continue to invest in expertise and technologies – from seedling production and process engineering to materials science andmarketing. The newways to usewood require the in dustry to look for innovative partnerships beyond those found in traditional forestry to unlock newbusinessmodels. Building this infrastructuremay take time and resources, but wemust trust in the ecosystemand its capacity to take us into a new era. The world of forests has proven much richer than I could ever have imaginedwhen Iwas gazing at the chimney of the papermill inmy hometownmany years ago. I amconvinced that the signifi cance of forests will continue to grow, not just for Finland’s fu ture, but for the world’s future in the years to come. We just need to find the right way to use its gifts efficiently and sustainably.

A deeper understanding of the forest ecosystem has led to new possibilities for the forestry industry that we are just beginning to explore. The forest is Finland’s future

Minister of Saxony-Anhalt Dr. Reiner Haseloff underlines the im portance by saying that the structural changes to the mining region are becomingmore attractive. “UPM is giving this process dynamism and momentum. The con structionof the biorefinery opens development prospects for our state in several directions. New industrial jobs for skilled workers will be created. High-quality jobs increase the chances that young people will stay in their home country. In this respect, the UPMplant is a piece of future security for the region,” he adds. The innovative technologies used at the plant make it possible to significantly reduce both the consumption of fossil rawmaterials and CO 2 emissions in a wide range of applications, including textiles, PET plastics, rubber applications and cosmetics. Toproduce rawmaterials,UPMuses certified industrial beechwood from forestry management in the region and can even use parts of the tree that cannot otherwise be utilised, as well as residual materials from sawmills. This way, it promotes sustainable forest management

and gives forest owners an economic incentive for the conversion of coniferous forests intomore climate-stablemixed forests. Working together While the region does play host to many different companies, there are also several research facilities contributing to the development of state-of-the-art technology. Duetsch says that they are actively look ing for collaborations with institutes and universities in the region. “We have excellent institutes in the vicinity, such as the Fraunhofer Center for Chemical-Biotechnological Processes CBP inLeuna, which research very similar things that we apply at UPM. We not only want to work and research together with these institutes, but also train the experts of tomorrow,” he explains. UPM is also a member of the BioEconomy Cluster, a network that was set up to overcome the phasing-out of coal by driving the region’s economic development in the context of the bioeconomy. It is now seeking to create a centre for sustainable chemistry by connecting partners from industries ranging from chemical, plastic and pulp to renowned research institutions. If Central Germany is to become amodel region for greenhydrogen, there is a need for more sustainability and climate neutrality, empha sises Haseloff: “We’re striving for a circular carbon economy that uses plastic waste, organic residue and sewage sludge as raw materials to produce plastics, synthetic rubber and so-called e-fuels. We want to set new standards in recyclingmanagement and waste utilisation.”

“The UPM plant is a piece of future security for the region.”

Suvi Pietarinen, Business Development Manager at UPM Biochemicals.