Businesses are being urged to prepare for a sweep of legislative changes placing biodiversity at the centre of operations across Europe, by taking an early look into voluntary schemes including the science-based targets for nature initiative.
The suggestion was made by Karin Moller, a bio economy expert at Research Institutes of Sweden during the latest Paper Workstream meeting ready to watch On Demand now.
Currently being trialled by a number of leading fashion brands, the science-based targets for nature framework has landed as a precursor to some major new pieces of legislation including the CSRD Biodiversity Chapter slated to be introduced to businesses in 2026.
Such legislation will require companies to measure and track the impact their operations have on biodiversity in areas such as forestry, a natural resource upon which the printing and publishing industry is heavily dependent. It’s been suggested by researchers at RISE – Research Institutes of Sweden that between 13 and 15% of all wood felled around the world is used in the publishing and paper sectors.
Among the corporate risks linked to biodiversity loss is the increase in cost or total loss of revenue due to the global depletion of those natural resources and the decline of ecosystem services. The Science-Based Targets for Nature framework aims to enable companies to assess, prioritise, measure, address, and track their impacts and dependencies on nature.
“As an industry highly dependent on natural resources, such as wood, pulp, water, and energy, and one that is relatively resource intensive, the publishing industry will be a target for new standards and regulations that are in the process of being developed and fine-tuned right now,” said Karin Morell from Research Institutes of Sweden during a special Paper Workstream meeting held on Products of Change last week.
This will include a host of regulations, conventions, and reporting frameworks entering the business sector, with the likes of the EU regulation on deforestation, the EU Nature Restoration Law, and the ISO standard on biodiversity each in varying stages of finalisation right now. The European Green Deal will also incorporate an EU Biodiversity Strategy and an EU Forest Strategy.
One of the many projects currently being worked on at RISE is CircHive, a programme for developing and piloting biodiversity footprinting and natural capital accounting via a ‘beehive’ of sectoral hubs for the ‘sustainable transition to a circular EU bioeconomy.’ A Horizon Europe project that kicked off in winter 2022, CircHive sets out to develop the methodologies that will help businesses make more informed decisions to protect ecosystems, enhance biodiversity and unlock the opportunities for businesses and society that a rich and biodiverse ecosystem provides.
RISE’s Karin took the chance during the Paper Workstream meeting to recommend companies in attendance sign up with CircHive to be a part of the process in developing those methodologies for nature.
The Paper Workstream meeting, featuring Karin Morell, bioeconomy expert of Research Institutes of Sweden can be watched by Products of Change members via the On Demand platform now.
