Dressed in wellington boots and rain jackets, the dedicated Tree Planting Team from Sappi Europe, including Berry Wiersum CEO, once again braved the Brussels weather to plant a further 1,250 saplings in the Forêt des Soignes. They were rewarded with rays of sunshine, and the feeling of satisfaction after a hard day’s work. The initiative has resulted in 16,250 trees planted since it started 7 years ago.
Jens Kriete is the Environmental Manager at Sappi Europe; “What better way to reconnect with our roots than to plant trees together; and what better way to teach future generations about our renewable industry than to also involve them in tree planting. Along with our CEO and colleagues, we had the pleasure of having some employees’ children to help us during the afternoon.” The team planted a mixture of hornbeams and oaks and celebrated their teamwork by each signing a panel erected on the site which says “These trees were planted with the support of Sappi Europe – 17th March 2017.”
CEO Berry Wiersum
Sappi’s employee-led tree planting initiative started in Spring 2010 in association with ANB (Agentschap voor Natuur en Bos), the equivalent of the Department of Forestry. This organisation is responsible for the planting of approximately 30,000 trees in the Forêt de Soignes every year as part of the National Forest Management Plan (Belgium).
Sappi employees
Further Information
La Forêt de Soignes is a forest located in the south-eastern part of Brussels covering an area of over 4,400 hectares - http://www.zonienwoud.be
Our approach to sustainability is based on a holistic view of Planet, People and Prosperity (the 3P’s). These values and commitments underpin everything we do, from our business decisions and processes to our dealings with stakeholders and customers.
Through Eco-Effectiveness, we as Sappi Europe make sustainability very real, moving it from a corporate topic to a topic relevant to each and everyone of us, every single day.
About Sappi
Sappi Europe SA is the leading European producer of coated fine paper used in premium magazines, catalogues, books and high-end print advertising. Headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, Sappi Europe is recognised for innovation and quality. Its graphic paper brands include Magno™, Quatro™, Vantage™, Royal, Galerie™ and GalerieArt™ ranges. Algro®, Leine®, Parade®, Fusion® and atelier™ are the brands for innovative solutions of speciality papers and boards.
Sappi papers are produced in mills accredited with ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 certification and EMAS registration for all our mills in the EU. Sappi European mills hold chain-of-custody certification under the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC®) and/or the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC™) schemes.
Sappi Europe SA is a division of Sappi Limited (JSE), a global company headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, with 12,000 employees and manufacturing operations on three continents in seven countries, sales offices in 50 countries, and customers in over 100 countries around the world.
Learn more about Sappi at www.sappi.com