International Paper has committed to use 15 percent less energy and to reduce its absolute greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent by the year 2020. Using 2010 as a baseline, these goals are the first in a set of comprehensive sustainability goals the company will announce in the coming months.

“To International Paper EMEA, sustainability simply means doing business in a thoughtful and enlightened manner today and tomorrow, just as you’d expect it to do, because we only have one planet to live on. We are extremely proud of our commitment to sustainability and we have an impressive track record of environmental leadership. Setting ourselves these new goals is the natural next step for us”, said Greg Gibson, Vice President of the company’s corrugated packaging business and Sustainability in Europe, Middle East and Africa.

“The goals of improving energy efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions go hand-in-hand. Being more energy efficient will directly improve emissions levels and in the last five years we have been able to reduce our global energy usage by 12 percent. We feel confident we can improve on this performance while still delivering our industry leading products and world class customer service.” Gibson added.

International Paper plans to achieve these reductions by increasing manufacturing efficiencies, exploring new technologies and engaging its employees to find innovative solutions within its operations. In its European operations, the company has already achieved a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions of over 70 percent since 1990.