Abitibi Bowater VP Denis Leclerc on the forestry sector, the planet, and its future inhabitants
Leaders In Sustainability is an exclusive series of interviews with those at the fore of the sustainability movement, both in the corporate and non-profit sectors.
By Chris Advansun and Kassandra Linklater
Abitibi Bowater, a leader in the forestry sector, shares their plans to also become a trailblazer in environmental sustainability. Alternative Channel’s Chris Advansun recently discussed with Vice President of Sustainability and Environment Denis LeClerc the importance of the company’s new philosophy, the importance of educating children on the environment and finally the importance of questioning everything.
DL - First of all, Abitibi Bowater is a new company; it was created at the end of October 2007. Although it was a merger of two companies, Abitibi and Bowater, the result of this merger was a creation of a new entity. The executive team completely reviewed the business model and decided to take a long term vision on leadership, and contrary to all other companies, we don’t want to be a leader in sustainability. What we want is to do the right thing and let others judge if we can be a model for other companies.
In terms of environmental sustainability, as we have reviewed that as well, we’ve identified three important aspects. The first one is that we need to be profitable, second, we want to be sustainable and third, we want to be responsible; the three words that best describe our journey to sustainability. As a new company, the senior management decided that sustainability was a key factor and that’s why they created a new position – Vice President of Sustainability and Environment. Since the creation of the company, we’ve done a lot of work talking to our people internally and talking to stakeholders, customers, and suppliers to really have a better understanding of what sustainability means for a forest-product company.
The result was that we came up with key drivers for the new company. The first, which is a global key driver, is the environmental footprint, so as a company we are committed to reducing our environmental footprint. We have also identified four other key drivers.
The first one is related to climate change. Our predecessor companies, Abitibi and Bowater, have done an excellent job in reducing their green house gas emissions. Actually the two companies, Abitibi and Bowater, if you compare the statistics with the year 2000, have reduced 35% of their green house gas admissions which is very significant. But we know we can do more and we can do better. We are working to find ways to use more green energy; so using biomass energy, even landfill gas, and working on improving the efficiency at our mills by using the best equipment. We have a task force to evaluate all of these options but our goal, our aspiration is to be a carbon neutral company. Since we are a major forest product company and we have a very significant lumber operation, we are working right now, using the World Resources Institute methodology and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, to make sure that we have the best tools to calculate our carbon footprint.
The second key driver is responsible fibre sourcing. Abitibi Bowater right now has 95% of its woodland operations certified. We want, by the end of the year, to be at 100% and even today with 95% certified that’s over 50 million hectors of forest. That makes Abitibi Bowater number one in the world, in terms of forest certification. Also, another well kept secret is the fact that we are using a lot of recycled fibre. Actually, I believe that we are the biggest recycler of old newspaper and magazines in North America. So we do recycle a lot of fibre, and we have a business to collect paper in North America and in the UK. Responsible fibre sourcing means using as much certified, recycled fibre as possible.
The third one is product stewardship. Do you know what our customers are asking us now?
CA - What is that?
In May we announced the creation of two new grades of paper. We have created an innovative paper that uses 50% less fibre, water, and energy than the traditional paper made for the same usage. We are committed to providing our customers with solutions that will help them reduce their carbon footprint.
Finally, stakeholder-relations is something that is very important. Of course we can’t please everyone but we want to be in a position to consider how we can team up with our stakeholders to create more beneficial partnerships. We have five roads: the first is that we are an employer, we have to deal with employees and unions, we are a neighbour for the community, we are also a supplier so we need to deal with customers, we are a partner, we partner with Government, NGO’s, suppliers, so we have a role there. And finally the fifth one, that we should never forget, is we are also an investment. So these factors are all important parts of our new sustainability road map.
CA - That’s great. Getting back to stakeholders, is it sometimes difficult to deal with, in particular non-profits, and in some cases just the general public, who have misperceptions about the forestry industry and its impact on the environment?
DL - It is a challenge, it is a major challenge. I don’t pretend I have all the answers but the impacts of its operations are very visible and it is also very emotional. I don’t know too many people that can look at a freshly harvested region and see it as beautiful. Maybe a forest engineer who sees that it is well done but generally it is against nature to see that. I would definitely say that the forest industry is a natural target due to the emotional impact. It will always be a challenge and the forest industry, in my mind, will always be a target. First, it is difficult because we can’t bring people into the forest and show them what we do. Second, what I often say to reporters is, don’t always believe what you are told. In fact, don’t believe me, don’t trust me, go and check the facts, and that what I am saying is true or not. It is important to develop this critical mindset, to always question everything. I am always urging NGO’s, the government and the population to say, “I want to know more.”
DL - First of all, I would like to say I have one of the best jobs on the planet, for the planet. Yes, we have a lot of challenges and it is difficult to explain everything, but it is a fantastic job and even though we are going through major restructuring, the forest industry will continue to play a vital role, not only on the social economic aspect but also on the environmental aspect. I also believe the forest industry will be a major positive player in the global solution to climate change. Right now we are talking about climate change, but what is going to be the next big global issue? Probably biodiversity and the forestry sector is also a major player in that issue.
Why am I so excited about it? Probably, because it has given me the opportunity to improve upon what we’re doing and help make a significant contribution towards sustainability.
For example, after our interview I am going to talk about the environment to 500 students on their last day of school. This year their theme was the environment. At lunch time, each students will leave the school with a small tree. And it’s not meant to be a gift; they have a challenge to take care of these trees. So that is just one example of my interests, to make sure that our children will do two things, one that they will be different than me when I was at their age so they will act in a positive manner towards the environment and the second one is that I hope when they are at my age, that the planet will be better than it is today
CA – That’s fantastic. I want to thank you for sharing Abitibi Bowater’s story.
DL – You’re welcome. Thank you.
Image credits (from top): 1) Denis Leclerc, Vice President of Environment and Sustainability at Abitibi Bowater; 2) One of Abitibi Bowater's mills in Thorold, Ontario; 3) Promotional image of Eco Laser, one of Abitibi Bowater's new "hybrid" paper lines; 4) Aerial image of Abitibi-Bowater's Thorold, Ontario mill.