PPC Climate Change Policy and Positions
Scroll down or click the links below for more information.
As part of PPC's ongoing commitment to sustainability, the association has adopted an official Climate Change Policy. The policy, based on the PPC partner American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) policy, outlines PPC's guiding principles for issues related to climate change. Click the link below to read the full policy.
PPC also has signed on to a position based on the current Waxman-Markey legislation based on the position of the Paper Industry Association Council (PIAC), of which PPC is a member. Read the full policy position by clicking the link below.
PPC Climate Change Policy
PPC Position: Waxman-Markey Legislation
CLIMATE CHANGE POLICY
Members of the Paperboard Packaging Council (PPC) recognize climate change as an issue of significant global concern.
PPC advocates environmentally responsible science-based policies that balance environmental, social, and economic elements.
PPC promotes climate change policies that:
1. Recognize the forest products industry’s important role in reducing greenhouse gases.
2. Recognize the contributions of sustainably managed forests and wood and paper products to sequester and store carbon and reduce greenhouse gases.
3. Recognize the contributions of recycling to reduce greenhouse gases.
4. Credit early action and incentivize continued progress in emissions reduction.
5. Retain the internationally recognized principle of carbon neutrality of biomass fuels.
6. Ensure that policies promote sound forest management practices.
7. Strengthen, rather than hinder, the competitiveness of the forest products industry and the U.S. economy.
8. Achieve global reductions in atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases at the lowest possible cost.
9. Promote parallel actions by high-emitting competitor nations.
10. Mitigate increases in energy and other operating costs for industrial consumers.
11. Ensure a diverse, stable and affordable energy supply.
12. Are flexible, cost-effective, and economy-wide.
13. Do not disrupt existing markets and local economies, nor hinder development of new markets.
14. Encourage long-term, high impact solutions by aligning targets with capital investment cycles.
15. Establish a single national program rather than be subject to varying requirements across jurisdictions.
16. Support research and development of technologies to capture or reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
17. Create program certainty to encourage necessary research, capital investment, and technology deployment.
18. Advance existing and breakthrough low-carbon technologies for energy production and use.
19. Include measuring and reporting methods that are simple, credible, transparent, and cost-effective.
back to the top
PPC Waxman-Markey Legislation Position
Adopted as part of PPC's ongoing participation in PIAC
Click here to download a .pdf or scroll down.
The Paper Industry Association Council (PIAC) is comprised of 25 allied paper product associations, including PPC, representing the major manufacturers and providers of paper-based communications and packaging products.
PIAC members recognize climate change as an issue of significant global concern. As Congress and state legislatures consider climate change legislation, it should ensure that policies protect American jobs, strengthen industry competitiveness, and recognize the critical role the paper industry plays in addressing climate change.
Climate change legislation should ensure reasonable emission allowance prices, adequate allocations, and realistic compliance timelines to address higher energy prices from a lower carbon economy.
Climate change legislation should recognize the paper industry’s important role in reducing greenhouse gases through contributions of:
- Sustainably managed forests and paper products that sequester and store carbon and reduce greenhouse gases.
- Recycling that reduces greenhouse gas emissions.
Climate change legislation should reinforce the benefits of recycling.
- Recognize existing recycling infrastructure and enhance the economic, social, and climate change benefits of recycling paper.
- Recognize government and non-government recycling service providers by providing, among other things, for accelerated depreciation, investment tax credits, grants, and zero-to-low interest loan guarantees for new or upgraded paper recycling equipment that increases the quality of recovered paper and helps avoid emissions of greenhouse gases
- Provide offset credits for projects that increase the quantity of recyclable material which is recycled versus sent for disposal.
Climate change legislation should strengthen, rather than hinder, the competitiveness of the paper industry and the U.S. economy.
- Because the U.S. paper industry cannot pass on costs and remain competitive in the world economy, high emission allowance prices would significantly reduce or eliminate already slim profit margins for U.S. companies. If allowances cost $60 per ton and all allowances are auctioned, industry net income would be essentially eliminated.
- Because technology is critical to any climate policy, Congress and the states should support and encourage investments in breakthrough technologies to bring them into full commercial use. Emission reduction timelines should coincide with the availability of the new technology needed to achieve them.
- If industry has to pay compliance and higher energy costs resulting from a carbon regulation, it must receive an adequate allocation of allowances to compete in the world economy.
- Ensure a diverse, stable and affordable energy supply.
- Not disrupt existing markets and local economies, nor hinder development of new markets.
back to the top
Back to Sustainability