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Lighter landfill loads

based fraction, deinking sludge and ash for various end uses. Deinking sludge is used as an additive and raw material in brick production and in the cement industry as a carrier and filler. Thanks to these determined efforts, UPMmills have reduced solid landfill to zero in Germany. Thomas Krauthauf , Senior Manager Business Development at the UPMSchongau/Ettringenmill notes that the costs of disposing of solid waste streams have decreased significantly in recent years due to closed recycling loops with other industries. As an example, the UPMSchongau mill has successfully developed new recycled products from ash generated in recovery boilers. “We have created new products by selecting certain ash fractions and developing their properties further. These fractions are nowmore effective in soil stabilisation and they can be used in other new applications as well,” Krauthauf says. For commercial applications to be successful, it is essential to find the right partners and to know the customers’ production processes in order to invent optimised new products in the field of secondary raw materials. “We can guarantee our customers a continuous rawmaterial stream. At the same time we have improved our quality control system to ensure that our rawmaterial properties match specifications. With demand for these materials growing, we have successfully increased prices while also decreasing our cost,” he adds.

The Finnish forest industry is rapidly decreasing its landfill waste volumes, and this trend will continue through more efficient use of side streams, predicts Maija Heikkinen, Senior Environmental Adviser at the Finnish Forest Industries Federation.

Thomas Krauthauf

More value

Boosting Europe's circular economy In December 2015, the EU Commission published a new action plan for the circular economy. The aim is to close the loop of product lifecycles throughmore efficient recycling and reuse, bringing benefits to both the environment and the economy.

“At the beginning of this year, Finland banned the dumping of organic waste at landfills. We hope that new legislation will also facilitate the fabrication of new products from side streams. This wouldmake

from side streams

Pekka Ståhlberg, Katja Viitikko

Maija Heikkinen

coming from solid waste treatment and landfills, but it also creates extra income from external sources. The Zero SolidWaste project focuses on five main side streams: ash, sludge, dregs, wood-based fraction and landfill operations. Most of UPM’s solid side streams are used for landscaping or incinerated for energy. Only a small fraction of waste goes to landfill. “We are currently doing research and development exploring several new applications where we could use these side streams. Fractions could be used in applications such as biogas production or in fertilisers. At the same time, we intend to create new business models and find new partners for cooperating in this field,” adds Katja Viitikko , who is responsible for the side stream reuse programme at UPMR&D. Ahead of the curve Germany has a long tradition of exploiting side streams such as wood-

Currently around 90% of the side streams produced at UPMmills are reused in other processes. UPM’s target for 2030 is zero solid waste dumped at landfills and zero incineration of side streams unless the energy is re-harnessed and exploited. Pekka Ståhlberg , Director of UPMBusiness Support says that Finland’s ongoing Zero SolidWaste project confirms UPM’s position as a frontrunner in the circular economy. Stricter waste legislation and increasing cost pressures are key drivers behind this trend. “We have to find a sustainable solution for side streams, enabling us to reuse excess materials and generate added value for us. Our aim is to define the best operational practice in these areas and scale themup UPM-wide in Finland. The target is for UPM to become a Zero SolidWaste company in Finland.” Harnessing side streams will also have a clear impact on UPM’s EBITDA. Not only does it eliminate costs

sound business sense as well. Forest industry companies are often the ones to pay for others exploiting their side streams as rawmaterial.” The forest industry’s total landfill waste volume in 2013 amounted to 114,000 tonnes. The latest statistics for 2014 confirm that this total decreased to 92,000 tonnes. This welcome trend is set to continue in coming years. According to Heikkinen, the forest industry’s side streams could be used more effectively in fields such as landscaping, but legislation has posed obstacles. “When the Finnish Land Use and Building Act is amended, we will try to ensure that we can increase the use of various recoveredmaterials. Also, threshold limit values should be revised so that ash can be usedmore widely for maintaining and building forest roads.”

“From the perspective of the forest industries, the new action plan places slightly more emphasis on the bioeconomy and the use of renewable rawmaterials, which is important for our industry. However, it still seems to focus on the recycling of non-renewable natural resources,” says Heikkinen. The new action plan also includes measures to monitor the circular economy andmeasure the use of resources. “We hope these indicators will take into account the difference between renewable and non-renewable natural resources. This is genuinely a big challenge.” The Commission’s action plan includes some 50 proposals to boost Europe’s circular economy in coming years. This includes actions in the fields of production, product design, waste, public procurement and consumer information.

UPM's Zero Solid Waste project aims to develop sustainable solutions for side streams generated in industrial production processes. The project is an integral part of the UPM Responsibility 2030 Agenda.

You can read more about our responsibility targets for 2030 in UPM's Annual Report 2015.

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