Responsibility
At Boise Inc., we take our responsibility for protecting the environment seriously:
- Protecting air and water quality near our manufacturing sites.
- Responsibly using energy and fiber resources.
- Reducing, reusing, and recycling manufacturing and finished product waste materials.
- Collaborating with others by listening to and acting on constructive ideas to demonstrate our commitment.
Air & water quality
Making the paper and packaging products our society needs and wants requires processes that affect air and water near our manufacturing sites. Boise Inc.’s dedicated employees protect air quality near our production sites and rigorously clean the water (effluent) used in manufacturing before it is returned to nearby rivers or streams.
Our manufacturing operations consistently meet or exceed tough standards set by multiple and complex state and federal environmental regulations.
Proof of performance: Air and water quality
From a 2000 baseline, per-ton-of-production basis, our paper mills have:
- Reduced odor-producing sulfur emissions to the air by about 52%.
- Reduced chlorinated organic matter (absorbable organic halides) in treated effluent by about 61%.
- Reduced oxygen-depleting substances (biochemical oxygen demand) in treated effluent by about 18%.
Fiber & energy use
Our manufacturing operations require substantial energy and wood resources. In addition to helping protect the environment, wisely using these resources is in Boise Inc.'s best economic interest. Efficiently and responsibly using energy and wood resources keeps our operating costs lower and ensures that we sustain the natural resources essential to our business. This underlying economic link makes our commitment to environmental sustainability a natural priority for us.
Proof of performance: Fiber
We track our wood fiber resources to ensure the raw material and finished products we purchase meet rigorous environmental standards, although we don't own timberlands.
- Our wood procurement practices are audited by an independent third party and certified under sustainable forestry certification standards.
Proof of performance: Energy
- In our paper mills, we reduced total energy use 11% from 1996 to 2007. Over the same 11 years, our papermaking operations increased energy self-sufficiency from 59% to 64% of total energy consumption.
- The energy we generate ourselves comes from renewable biomass – mostly solid and liquid byproducts of wood and paper manufacturing.
Waste materials
Effectively reducing and reusing waste in manufacturing processes and recycling material reduce the need for “virgin” (never-before-used) materials, a goal that often makes both environmental and economic sense.
The challenge is to eliminate as much waste as possible while productively reusing the waste that cannot be eliminated, thereby reducing our costs and the amount of material sent to landfills. Processes can be changed to more efficiently use raw materials, thereby reducing the byproducts left over as waste. Products can be engineered to use manufacturing waste and waste from finished products – wood, paper, plastics, etc.
Proof of performance: Waste materials
Our recycled paper products reuse fiber from paper that consumers have discarded (postconsumer recycled fiber). We use recycled fiber to make forms, envelope, and printing papers and containerboard.
- Boise® AspenTM 100 recycled copy paper is made of 100% postconsumer fiber.
- We recycled over 103,000 tons of wastepaper at our Jackson, Alabama, paper mill. in 2007.
Commitments
At Boise Inc., we reach out to others to ask for opinions and feedback on our environmental practices. We listen to and act upon constructive ideas to demonstrate our commitment and improve our environmental performance. We believe it’s important for us to listen to and collaborate with others.
Proof of performance: Commitments
Performance Track
Our paper mill in Wallula, Washington, joined EPA's National Environmental Performance Track Program in 2007. Under this program, the mill voluntarily committed to reduce energy use, water use, waste, and air emissions.
Performance Track website
Industrial Footprint
Wallula, also voluntarily participates in the Washington Department of Ecology Industrial Footprint program, which is designed to improve environmental performance and help regulators set baselines that address environmental, economic, and social impacts of industrial operations.
Industrial Footprint website
E-mail: Sustainability
Phone: 208 384 7000
