In a story Oct. 24 about Indonesia's pulp and palm oil industries, The Associated Press misspelled the name of the country's top pulp producer. The company is Asia Pulp & Paper, not Asian Pulp and Paper.

A corrected version of the story is below:

Indonesia forests still dwindle despite reforms

Indonesia says destructive palm oil industry is changing, environmentalists remain skeptical

By MATTHEW PENNINGTON

Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) At home and abroad, Indonesia is highlighting its progress in curbing the environmental destruction that has depleted forests and made the Southeast Asian nation a leading source of greenhouse gases. But environmentalists are unconvinced.

They say pulp and palm oil plantations are still expanding at an alarming rate in Sumatran forests, despite efforts by the government and industry. That expansion has contributed to climate change and threatens endangered tigers and orangutans.

More than 80 percent of Indonesia's emissions are due to clearing of what is the world's third-largest area of rainforest, after Brazil and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

About half of Indonesia's rainforest has already been destroyed.

Greenpeace, which has conducted extensive research on deforestation in Indonesia, says government maps show the country lost 4,790 square miles (12,400 square kilometers) of forest between 2009 and 2011. The main cause, accounting for about a quarter of lost forest, was for production of palm oil, which is used as food and as biofuel. Carbon-rich peatlands being cleared for plantations must be drained first. That releases vast amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has committed to cutting greenhouse emissions by 26 percent by 2020. His government in 2011 declared a moratorium on new concessions in primary forest in a $1 billion deal with Norway. The moratorium was extended this May for two years. Environmentalists say that doesn't go far enough because it doesn't cover existing concessions.

The U.S. government reported in June that Indonesia's palm oil industry has enough land that the nation's authorities have said can be developed for agricultural use to continue its current, rapid rate of plantation expansion for at least 10 years.

Indonesia is a nation of 250 million people scattered across hundreds of islands that would be vulnerable to climate change from rising sea levels. But it's also a big contributor to the global problem, being among the largest emitters of greenhouse gases after China and the United States.

Indonesia's ambassador to Washington, Dino Patti Djalal, said the government is working with industry and environmental groups to protect forests. He highlighted the move this February by Asia Pulp & Paper the country's top pulp producer to halt clearance of natural forest and use just existing plantation and degraded land; and a commitment by Sinar Mas which controls both that company and top palm oil producer Golden Agri-Resources to protect orangutans.

"It shows that the industry wants to change, they want to do the right thing, but sometimes we have just got to help them," Djalal told the Stimson Center think tank this week.

The amount of forest cover lost annually has fallen: from an estimated 1 million hectares (about 2.5 million acres) between 1990 and 2010 equivalent to nearly 1 percent of the national total per year down to 600,000 hectares (about 1.5 million acres) per year between 2009 and 2011.

Amy Moas, a U.S.-based forest campaigner for Greenpeace, acknowledged some progress but said "there are dozens, perhaps hundreds, of companies still skirting lax laws and regulations in Indonesia and finding the cheapest and easiest way to do business, which means horrible environmental devastation."

Moas said government data shows that Asia-Pacific Resources International Ltd, or APRIL, Indonesia's second-largest producer of pulp, is still using rainforest wood to supply its mill in Riau province, which has faced the most intense deforestation on Sumatra, a western island famed for its biodiversity.

APRIL spokesman Mike Zampa said Greenpeace was exaggerating the amount of rainforest wood entering the mill. He said 65 percent of the fiber used is from plantation wood. He said the company develops only about half the land on its concessions in Indonesia, and the rest goes to conservation and community use.

Accidental and deliberate forest fires this summer in peat-rich Riau, also a major center for palm oil production, cast a haze as far as Thailand, angering Indonesia's neighbors. According to Greenpeace, between 2009 and 2011 the province saw 10 percent of its tiger habitat destroyed putting stress on the dwindling population of 400 tigers in Sumatra.

Over the same period in Borneo, a central region that abuts Malaysia, 545 square miles (1,410 square kilometers) of forested orangutan habitat was cleared, a third in areas licensed to palm oil concessionaires, Greenpeace says.

Richard Cronin, a Stimson Center expert on Southeast Asian environmental issues, said decentralization of decision-making that came with the dawn of democracy in Indonesia 15 years ago means that the central government has problems controlling what happens in provinces. He said commercial pressures, corruption and demand from a growing population for agricultural land take a toll.

Djalal, the ambassador, acknowledged that it's not easy to get national environmental policies implemented locally and that, "there are times that the industry needs to be disciplined, especially in terms of how they get their land."

Nigel Sizer, a forestry expert at the World Resources Institute, a Washington-based environmental research organization, said just 15 percent to 20 percent of Indonesia's palm oil is certified under industry standards which critics say are too weak anyway.

The institute says producers looking to adopt more environmentally friendly cultivation face complex regulations if they wish to shift their operations from forested to degraded land. And land is often improperly classified. In some cases, areas that should be protected can be used for plantations, while degraded land cannot.

It cites Borneo, where there's an area of degraded land the size of Greece suitable for palm oil production, but more than one-third of that land is classified as forest that can't be used for agriculture.

Morcon, Inc., owner of tissue, towel and napkin converting facilities in Upstate New York and South Carolina, has announced the sale of its business to longtime paper industry executive Joseph F. Raccuia. Mr. Raccuia is the former president and CEO of SCA Tissue-North America and former president and CEO of uncoated printing paper manufacturer Finch Paper LLC.

“I bring a wide and varied background to Morcon”

The announcement was made by Morcon founder, president and CEO Wayne R. Morris, who established the business in 1987. Morcon serves the Away-From-Home commercial, food service, healthcare and industrial markets. The company employs 120 people at its Great Falls, SC, location and 85 people in Cambridge, NY, where the business is headquartered.

“Morcon is a very well-run, successful and growing business,” Mr. Raccuia said. “I’m looking forward to continuing this momentum, and working with Morcon’s employees to take the business to even greater levels of success.”

Mr. Raccuia said Morcon’s two locations are strategically located to service the eastern U.S. and key portions of the Midwest, although there are customers nationwide. His long-term plans envision additional locations to grow business in the central and western parts of the country.

During his tenure with SCA, Mr. Raccuia engineered a 35% growth in sales, taking the company from $750 million to $1 billion and propelling SCA to the number-two position in the U.S. Away-From-Home Market. Prior to joining SCA, he served in a number of leadership positions with Encore Paper Co., a tissue manufacturer in Upstate New York that was later purchased by SCA. For much of the past four years, he served as president and CEO of Finch Paper, a printing paper manufacturer in Upstate New York.

“I bring a wide and varied background to Morcon,” Mr. Raccuia said. “I have worked in the C-Suite for one of the largest tissue producers in the world, and I understand how the big players operate. At the same time, through my experience with Encore and Finch, I know how to marshal the agility, flexibility and energy of a smaller business to out-maneuver and out-service the industry giants, establish niche markets and build a sustainable, successful enterprise.”

In the immediate future, Mr. Raccuia said, his priorities are to meet with Morcon’s employees, customers and key suppliers, and begin building a go-to-market strategy that anticipates and exceeds customer expectations and capitalizes on the company’s strategic strengths.

“I know where I want to take this business, but to get there I have to draw on others’ expertise and ideas, and that includes our employees, customers and suppliers,” Mr. Raccuia said.

Morcon founder Mr. Morris, said “Morcon has been my family’s life for nearly three decades, but now is the right time for me to move. I could not have found a more qualified or interested buyer than Joe Raccuia, and would not have entrusted this business to anyone with lesser credentials or enthusiasm. Joe has a great vision for growing this business, and tremendous contacts within the industry to help him reach his goals.”     

Metso's automation business has been recognized by the Brazilian Pulp and Paper Technical Association (ABTCP) with the award of "Top supplier of automation for the pulp and paper industry". The voting phase included professionals from the sector and a strict technical evaluation of the candidates. The awards, regarded as the most prestigious in the pulp and paper segment in Brazil, have been organized by ABTCP for the past 12 years. This is the eighth consecutive year that Metso has won the automation category. The presentation ceremony will take place on Wednesday, October 9, in São Paulo.

"This award is granted to Metso in recognition of its commitment and investments on the technological development and services for the pulp and paper customers and its collaboration to the sustainable growth of Brazil", says Marcelo Motti, Metso Vice President for Automation in South America. "Metso solutions and services help to meet our customers' needs, improving production process efficiency and reducing raw material and energy consumption where resources are becoming limited, as well as meeting the increasing challenges in the operational cost chain."

Metso lays great emphasis on a strong presence in every region and country the company does business, investing in people and assets. Metso Service Centers throughout Brazil are a good example of this, allowing Metso to offer better service, be closer to its customers and facilitate the company integration into the local communities.

In 2013, one of the largest deliveries by Metso in South America was a contract for a new CMPC plant in Guaíba, in the South region of Brazil. The supply scope covers a cooking unit and fiber line, drying and baling machine, evaporation, recovery boiler, caustification and lime furnace, including a built-in automation solution and simulator for operational training in all process areas.

Clariant International Ltd, a world leader in Specialty Chemicals, and Wilmar International Limited, a leading Asian agribusiness group, have received the relevant merger clearances for the establishment of their 50-50 joint venture called "the global amines company", which is now in operation. 

The global amines company will be the global platform for production and sales of fatty amines and selected amines derivatives. The joint venture will be headquartered in Singapore with global sales, distribution and production affiliates. 

The joint venture has its own production capacities for amines in Germany and China, contributed by Clariant and Wilmar respectively, as well as access to amines capacities in Brazil and Mexico. For amine derivatives, the global amines company has access to around a dozen Multi-Purpose-Plants of Clariant all around the globe. Leveraging on the global reach and the individual strengths of Wilmar and Clariant, the global amines company will seek significant growth opportunities - in particular, in the markets of Industrial Care, Home Care and Personal Care. 

"The combination of Wilmar's integrated agribusiness model based on renewable materials and its strong position in oleochemicals with Clariant's technical experience and market presence in the downstream amines and derivative sector will position the global amines company as the first fully integrated and competitive player along the value chain of amines," states Stephan Lynen, General Manager of the global amines company.

Leveraging on their track record of technical and commercial reliability, both partners are dedicated to position the global amines company as a new leading player in the amines and amine derivatives market.

Global Tissue Group Inc. (GTG), a leading private label paper manufacturer, has officially signed a licensing agreement with the U.S. Army brand. The U.S. Army brand will allow GTG's customers to honor their troops and veterans by offering a variety of products for the home.

"Our alliance with the U.S. Army was just what we were looking for all along," CMO Philip Shaoul exclaimed. "The brand fits perfectly with the durable and lasting qualities of our products and also stands for the 'there when you need it to be' quality found both in our products and in our troops."

GTG's line of U.S. Army branded products including paper towels, paper napkins and facial tissue that will be distributed to drug stores, grocery stores, club stores and discount retailers nationwide. Additionally, special to the partnership is the patriotism the program offers. "What we're really excited about is that the sales of this product will benefit the MWR (Morale, Welfare and Recreation) program for all soldiers, veterans and their families. It's good to give back to a worthy program."

Expect to see a new line of U.S. Army branded products around late May 2013 to honor Memorial Day and throughout the rest of the year to commemorate all patriotic holidays.

The Port Townsend Paper Corp.’s controversial landfill issue won’t be heard by the state Pollution Control Hearings Board until December.

A hearing had been set for August before the state board to rule on whether the mill’s landfill classification should change from inert to a more stringent limited-purpose-landfill (LPL) designation.

Jefferson County Public Health Environmental Specialist Pinky Feria-Mingo said Monday, June 17 that the date change was related to the hearings board.

Both the county and the state Department of Ecology (DOE) told the mill to file for an LPL permit last summer.

An LPL permit would require more stringent monitoring of groundwater and would require the mill to prove it has the financial means to close the landfill once it is full.

Arguing that the law had not changed and the waste had not changed, the mill refused and applied for an inert permit, a less stringent permit and one it has had for about a decade.

“Ecology believes the Port Townsend Paper Corp. should be monitoring groundwater and providing financial assurance for its landfill,” said Peter Lyon, Southwest Region Waste 2 Resource Program manager, of why the DOE intervened in the dispute earlier this year. “As a limited purpose landfill, the company would have to meet these criteria.”

Mill officials steadfastly maintain the waste stream has not changed and neither have the laws, “so the landfill designation should not change either,” Kevin Scott, environmental director for the mill, wrote earlier this year after announcing the mill would appeal Health Officer Tom Locke’s decision to deny the company an inert permit.

Until the Pollution Control Hearings Board issues a decision, the mill continues to operate under its less environmentally stringent inert permit, according to Feria-Mingo.

Between the 11th and 20th of June, Klabin’s Otacilio Costa Plant (SC) will be holding its Annual General Shutdown, a compulsory procedure which consists of interrupting paper production and is intended to ensure that all the necessary maintenance for the proper functioning of the mill is carried out with quality and in safety. This is a common procedure in the pulp and paper sector and occurs every year in the company’s plants.
 
During these ten days, about 50 contracted companies and 1,400 temporary workers will be involved in the General Shutdown. Among the principal activities programmed are inspections of boilers, digesters, power generation and distribution systems and production process controls. This amount of temporary workers requires logistics and infrastructure, involving transportation, lodgings and meals among other items which drive and boost the economy of the town of Otacilio Costa and the region. There are other additional benefits, such as the taxes generated for the municipality and extra movement in hotels, bars, restaurants and stores, as well as the services to assist the workers’ stay in the town.
 
During the days of the Shutdown, variations in odors and noise coming from the mill – especially on the 11th and 12th, at the beginning of the Shutdown, and on the 19th and the 20th, as machines start operating again – may be noticed by the community. It is important to note that these alterations cause no harm to people’s health nor to the environment.
 
As of this year, Klabin will have an exclusive channel available to attend the community which will function 24 hours a day. In the case of doubts concerning the environment, the community can get in touch with the company via the telephone number 0800 728 0607.

Catalyst Paper (TSX:CYT) is reaching higher to expand an already broad mechanical printing product range with the addition of Ascent, a coated three paper. Made at the Port Alberni mill on the only coated mechanical paper machine in Western North America, Ascent went from idea to market in the space of a few short months.

"Our product development team brought tremendous cross-disciplinary expertise to the initiative, along with the understanding that a new product had to be hands down excellent to meet the quality expectations of customers when there is so much choice in the marketplace," said Tom Crowley, senior vice-president, sales and marketing. "Ascent was lab tested, trialled in pressrooms, and when it comes to printing, there's no better proof of how well it shows, than Catalyst's most recent sustainability report which was printed on Ascent."

Catalyst has long specialized in lower-basis weight production across a wide range of papers from newsprint and directory grades, to specialty papers ideal for retail inserts and flyers, to high quality glossy mechanical papers popular with commercial printers, magazine, catalogue and book publishers.

"We're adding a third branch to our coated family of products - Electracote, Pacificote and now Ascent - and they all offer the benefit of bulk without weight. It's a great advantage for postage-sensitive customers who are bracing for another round of rate hikes," said Mr. Crowley. "Like many of our products, Ascent is available under our Sage program for those who value the assurance of a top notch sustainability partner who reinforces their own brand promise to environmentally aware consumers."  Port Alberni mill has one of North America's greenest footprints with 91% of the energy coming from renewable biomass fuels and hydroelectric power.

SOURCE: Catalyst Paper Corporation

245 names have been revealed; more to come over the next several weeks

By Song Kyung-hwa and Lee Wan, staff reporters On May 22, the website News Tapa, also called the Korea Center for Investigative Journalism, unveiled a list of major South Korean business figures who founded “paper companies” in the British Virgin Islands, a notorious tax haven.

The names included former Korea Employers’ Federation chairman and current OCI (formerly DC Chemical) chairman Lee Soo-young and his wife, OCI Museum director Kim Kyung-ja, as well as Lee Young-hak, who is the wife of former Korean Air deputy chairman Cho Jung-gun, and DSDL (formerly Dongseong Development) chairman Cho Wook-rae and oldest son Hyeon-gang. Cho is the younger brother of Cho Seok-rae, chairman of the Hyosung Group.

The National Tax Service now plans to use the list and information to conduct an investigation into possible systematic tax evasion.

News Tapa held a press conference at the Seoul Press Center in central Seoul on May 22 to announce the first findings of its investigation in the “Tax Haven Project,” a joint effort with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ). The site said it had found 245 South Koreans on a list of customers given on internal documents for Portcullis TrustNet (PTN) and Commonwealth Trust (CTL), agencies that broker the establishment of paper companies in tax havens. After finishing identity confirmation procedures for around twenty of them, it gave an initial three listings.

News Tapa is an investigative journalism site that was founded in 2011 by current president Kim Yong-jin, formerly of KBS, and other journalists who were dismissed from their jobs during the Lee Myung-bak administration (2008-2013).

According to the documents News Tapa revealed, Lee Soo-young and his wife set up the paper company Richmond Forest Management Limited in the Virgin Islands on April 28, 2008. Cho Jung-gun and his wife founded Kapiolani Holdings Inc. on June 19, 2007, while Cho Wook-rae and son set up Quick Progress Investment Ltd on March 15, 2007.

Cho Jung-geon, Lee Young-hak, and Cho Wook-rae were all found to have conducted transactions on high-price apartment properties in Hawaii through their companies.

“It’s very rare for internal information at PTN or CTL to be directly linked with bank accounts,” explained Kim Yong-jin. “But there are times when you can spot the movements of assets, with references to bank accounts in business emails and information about beneficiaries, in the case of trust management.”

“The experts at the National Tax Service will investigating the tax evasion,” Kim added.

He also said News Tapa would not be providing data to government agencies because of a promise to ICIJ.

News Tapa plans to reveal more names two or three times a week over the next several weeks.

“The ones we announced this time were mainly chaebol families,” Kim said. “Next time, I think we’ll be including a lot of executives at those businesses.

"Some of them are chaebol group names that people will have heard of."

The NTS said it planned to analyze the site’s list of South Koreans using tax havens and investigate the possibility of tax evasion.