Reduced Environmental Footprint on Air, Land and Water

Increased Forest Research and Conservation

SAINT JOHN, New Brunswick, June 30, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- J.D. Irving, Limited (JDI) has released its 2019 Sustainability Report for its Forestry and Forest Products Operations.

The company's sustainability framework consists of five focus areas:

1. Healthy environment
2. Growing opportunities for people
3. Vibrant communities
4. Strong partnerships for business success
5. Safe and efficient operations

Below are some highlights from the 2019 report.

All Forest Products Operations Combined - Performance Summary

Healthy Environment

• 60% green energy use from renewable fuels like biomass – up by 7% from 5 years ago
• 22% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions over the past 5 years
• 12% reduction in water usage over the past 5 years per tonne of tissue product made
• 6% reduction in overall (all operations) water usage of the past 5 years
• 32% increase in conservation sites over the past 5 years as part of our voluntary, award winning Unique Areas program in Canada and the U.S.
• 17% increase in waste that is diverted from landfill for beneficial use over the past 5 years
• Zero non-compliance issues following 3rd party forest certification audits* based on 145 indicators (environmental, social and economic) measured over 5 years.
• $40.5 million as of 2019 invested in forest research ($1.5 million every year since 1992)
• 5% overall improvement in safety performance over the past 5 years (recordable incident rate reduction)
• Over 27,000 km of water course protection (3 times the width of Canada).
• 18.8 million trees planted in 2019 - over 1 billion planted since 1957
• 92 million tonnes of CO2 absorbed by growing forests we own or manage over the next 50 years - equal to 360,000 cars off the road, every year for the next 50 years.

Forest Certification by Independent Auditors

Every year the lands JDI owns or manages in Canada and the U.S. are subject to third party audit by scientific experts from the Sustainable Forestry Initiative^® (SFI^®).

In Maine, our woodlands are also certified by the Forest Stewardship Council^® (FSC^® C041515). 

Following 3rd party forest certification audits in 2019, Irving Woodlands had zero non-compliance issues based on 145 indicators (environmental, social and economic) measured over 5 years.

Read the 2019 SFI and FSC report cards here.

Vibrant Communities 

Growing Opportunities for People

• 665 new employees welcomed in 2019 to our forestry and forest products operation – 53% increase over 2015. New hires are the result of business growth, retirements and normal workforce turnover.
• 4961 direct employees (FTEs) in our forestry and forest products operations (Canada and USA)

Strong Partnerships for Business Success

• Record breaking wood purchases from private NB Woodlot Owners and Producers. (April 1 2019- March 31, 2020 season) – over $40 million in wood purchases for over 18,000 truckloads of wood

Hiring

Interested in joining our team?  We’re hiring for Sawmills, Woodlands, Irving Pulp & Paper, Irving Paper, Lake Utopia Paper and Irving Tissue. Apply at careers.jdirving.com.

Scope of this Report

This report includes:

• Maine, NB and NS Woodlands
• Sawmills at Kedgwick NB, Chipman NB, Doaktown NB, St. Leonard NB, Veneer NB, Baker Brook NB, Clair NB, Sussex NB, Ashland ME, Dixfield ME, Truro NS
• Irving Pulp & Paper in Saint John NB
• Irving Paper in Saint John NB
• Irving Tissue in Saint John NB, Dieppe NB, Fort Edward NY, Toronto ON
• Lake Utopia Paper near St. George NB

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/f69376d4-2bb8-47c9-a100-81625b1b25b9