Waste management

KODS 2030

Zero destination of industrial waste in landfills

Percentage of reuse of industrial waste

In 2023, Klabin increased solid waste reuse and recycling, motivated by the reduction in the amount of industrial waste disposed in landfills, mainly from the process of purifying shavings and residual waste from recycled paper industrial units. The Company has also implemented measures to increase the reuse/processing of waste such as dregs and sludge. The Lages Unit (Santa Catarina), which produces industrial bags, now uses sludge waste for composting and class 1 waste for co-processing. In February 2023, the Rio Verde Unit (Goiás) began to reuse, recycle, and/or co-process 100% of its industrial solid waste. 

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Amounts of waste generated and composition (tons)

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Reused waste, by recovery operation (tons)

GRI-306-5 SASB-RT-CP-150a.1

Unused waste, by disposal method (tons)

GRI-306-3 GRI-306-4 GRI-306-5

Collection and monitoring of data, standards, and tools

Klabin plants have a solid waste inventory and management system, based on characteristics such as weight, classification according to NBR 10.004, costs, revenues, and destination. Most of the material is controlled by weighing on scales in kilos or tons, with the support of tools and software. The weights are recorded and consolidated on the Company's indicator management platform, which identifies destinations and deviations, ensuring they are properly handled. Critical monthly reviews are also carried out at the corporate level to monitor the volumes generated and final destinations. Waste inventory reporting follows the state and federal environmental laws and regulations.

Performance analysis

Klabin has a solid waste processing plant at the Puma Unit, responsible for processing and reusing around 90% of all the waste generated at its most representative units (more than 70% of the company's total production capacity).

In 2023, the main actions aimed at increasing the rate of waste reuse were:  

•  Otacílio Costa (Santa Catarina) and Correia Pinto (Santa Catarina) units: construction waste sent for recycling/reuse; and promotion of educational actions aimed at advancing waste sorting for recycling, reducing non-recyclable material. 
• Correia Pinto Unit (Santa Catarina): progress in studies on the destination of dregs for co-processing and agricultural use.  
• Otacílio Costa Unit (Santa Catarina): implementation of actions to send non-recyclable waste for co-processing. 
• Monte Alegre (Paraná), Puma (Paraná), and Rio Negro (Paraná) units: use of dreg waste (Monte Alegre and Puma) and sludge (Rio Negro) to produce ceramics. 
• Rio Verde Unit (Goiás): co-processing of solid waste previously destined for industrial landfills. 
• Lages Unit (Santa Catarina): disposal of sludge waste for composting and Class I waste for co-processing. 

Klabin's businesses have operations that generate solid waste, whether from human activities or production processes. The Company focuses on efficient production, with the least waste, and encourages the reuse of by-products. When internal recovery is not feasible, waste is directed towards recycling, and external recovery, is guaranteed by the implementation of procedures and regular monitoring of its proper internal segregation. Since 2020, the Company has committed to zero disposal of industrial waste in landfills by 2030.  

The corporate dashboard for environmental indicator management enables monitoring and tracking of the progress of the action plan with measures adopted to make use of the waste. of the progress of the actions taken to utilize waste. Every month, the corporate Environment area holds critical analysis meetings with the units, where deviations are dealt with and actions are defined to reduce waste generation and alternative landfill destinations.  

The Company invests in the pursuit of new technologies to incorporate and add value to the resources generated. For this reason, it maintains a line of research, linked to the R&D area, aimed at eliminating – wherever possible – or reducing environmental impacts. 

The potential significant impacts related to the waste are generated in Klabin’s own activities and value chain. The production process begins with the management of the eucalyptus and pine forests. The trees are processed in the field, transported to the pulp and paper production plants and the bark and other forest residues are used in the boilers to produce energy and steam for the units.  

In the conversion of wood into pulp and paper, the main waste generated is sludge from the treatment of effluents and waste from the chemical recovery of soda to extract cellulose fibers from the wood. Most of the waste is recovered for agricultural use. Other waste, such as dregs and grits, which account for approximately 1.4% of the total generated at Klabin, have been studied by the R&D team since 2018 and are used as raw material to produce soil corrective inputs, absorbed by the Forestry division.  

Pulp produced is transported directly to conversion customers. Some of the paper produced goes to Klabin's packaging plants and some is sold to be converted into packaging. At this stage, leftover paper (refills) is generated which, together with scraps bought from the market, is the raw material for producing recycled paper. In addition, other waste generated in larger quantities is sludge from effluent treatment and waste from preparing chips for production.  

One of the major challenges is to maintain waste reuse practices even with the increase in generation due to Klabin's growth in production, through acquisitions or expansions. To promote and structure the post- and pre-consumption paper recycling chain, Klabin has four recycled paper production plants in the Southeast and Northeast regions. They absorb both refiles and corrugated board scraps generated by Klabin and material from clients and operators in the recycling chain (e.g., trimmers and waste managers). 

Klabin's recycling capacity is 450,000 tons per year, which positions the Company as the largest paper recycler in Brazil. The recycling plants supply high-quality recycled raw materials that are incorporated by the packaging units to produce secondary packaging. 

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Measures taken to manage significant impacts​
 

Items 7.8, 7.9, 7.16, and 7.18 of Klabin's Sustainability Policy encompass, respectively: the pursuit of efficient technologies and solutions; the strengthening of circularity; pollution prevention using reducing the impacts of solid waste generation; and compliance with legislation and standards applicable to the product, environment, health, and safety. Environmental management is guided by the guidelines established by ISO 14001, which certifies most of the Company's units. 

All units undergo an internal audit. While certified units are being subjected to the management system standards, non-certified units are being prepared for the formal audit by Klabin's internal team, certified as ISO 14.001 auditors. In addition to internal guidelines and policies, federal (Law No. 12.305/2010 – National Policy on Solid Waste), state, and municipal legislation related to solid waste are constantly monitored, accompanied by actions to demonstrate compliance. 

Environmental indicators are one of the pillars for variable compensation for employees and senior management. 

The topic is also part of Klabin's Sustainable Development Goals (KODS), with the target of zeroing the disposal of industrial waste to landfills by 2030. It was internalized in the strategic planning of the units and is tracked monthly through performance indicators, monitoring of the generation and adequate destination of residues, and definition of actions to reduce the generation or better technologies/disposal alternatives. In 2023, the Company reached a reuse percentage of 99.3% of the industrial solid waste generated in its operation. 

The R&D department has been working with the Sustainability and Environment departments in the units to find alternative disposal for waste other than landfills. There have been several advances, such as the incorporation of sludge, dregs and grits in the making of bricks and cement artifacts, and the agricultural use of process residues together with lime sludge. 

Klabin's units continuously participate in the Superar Program, which adopts a management methodology based on the TPM (Total Productive Management) model. Among the aspects dealt with in the program are energy consumption, water, and waste management. According to the profile of each unit, awareness-raising/training actions are carried out to make progress on the opportunities for improvement identified (focus on operational efficiency). 

Waste generated by third parties 

Klabin defines performance and legal requirements when contracting third parties for waste management. For verification purposes, in addition to the routine monitoring of the waste transportation and disposal operations, contractors undergo frequent environmental audits conducted by Company professionals to identify technical qualifications, opportunities for improvement, and adaptations to meet the requirements of Klabin and/or legal requirements. 

ISO 14001 certification

A table listing the number of employees per certified unit can be found at the end of the chapter on the link: ISO 14001 Certification.