Of the 3,000-plus sites in the European Union that have received EMAS certification, more than two-thirds are in Germany. One of them is Stora Enso Reisholz, a large paper mill in Düsseldorf owned by the multinational Stora Enso forest products group.

The site, which gained EMAS accreditation in 1997, covers 150,000 square metres next to the River Rhine. Paper-making has taken place here since 1905. The plant employs almost 500 people, and its two paper machines produce around 200,000 tonnes of magazine paper a year.

The company's 24-page environmental statement for the site, published in 2001, describes the various environmental impacts that arise from the plant's activities, and documents the progress that has been made in mitigating these effects.

A two-page table lists 13 'environmental objectives', and for each one it sets out the specific measure, or measures, that are being taken to deliver it.

Additionally, this table sets out:

Who in the organisation is responsible for each initiative (for example the civil engineer, the environmental protection officer or the engineering manager);
The date by which the improvement is due to be delivered; and
The status of the task (whether completed or still in progress).

Not surprisingly, the process of making paper consumes large quantities of wood pulp. However, so-called de-inked pulp - essentially waste paper - is also being increasingly used. Other raw materials include china clay, talc, and chalk, which are used to give the paper greater smoothness, opacity and printability.

During the manufacturing process a number of other chemicals are used, including bleaching agents, 'complexing agents' (used to chemically bind iron and manganese from the wood pulp), and anti-foaming agents and biocides which are added to the circulating water. It also consumes large amounts of electricity, fuel oil and fresh water. The latter is mostly extracted from deep wells beneath the site.

The principal waste products from the site are tree bark and filter residues, plus liquid effluent which is treated at the municipal wastewater plant.

The company's EMAS report for the Düsseldorf site outlines several initiatives that have taken place in recent years, and which have improved, or are expected to improve, the plant's environmental performance. These include:

The opening in 1999 of a large warehouse for storing paper reels, which has reduced the number of lorry trips that need to be made to external storage sites;
The gradual replacement of worn-out sewer pipes beneath the site in order to eliminate leakages of toxic chemicals into the ground - in 1999, around 5% of the site's 4,000-metre network of pipes was renewed;
The construction of a new water cooling tower which came on line in 2000, and which reduced the demand for fresh water from 12.3 to 12.1 cubic metres per tonne of paper produced;
An ongoing rise in the proportion of de-inked pulp used as a raw material, and a corresponding decrease in the use of chemical pulp.

Other initiatives have included combining the environmental and quality audits into a single, streamlined process, and introducing 'open days' where members of the public can visit the site and find out more about its activities.

On the other side of the balance sheet, energy consumption at the plant has increased, following the introduction of a more intensive pulp grinding process in 1998. In response to this, the company has commissioned an audit of its energy use.

At the end of the statement, three pages of tables and graphs provide detailed time-series data for the period 1996 to 2000 on the key indicators of water consumption, raw materials, energy use and waste.

It reveals, among other things, that in the five years to 2000:

Paper output rose by 8%;
Wood pulp consumption increased by 13%;
There was a threefold increase in the use of de-inked pulp as a raw material;
Demand for municipal water dropped by 16%;
There was a marginal rise in energy consumption (steam and electricity combined) when expressed per tonne of paper produced; and
The amount of filter cake solid waste produced almost doubled.

From these data, it is clear that the environmental performance of the Reisholz mill is a mixed bag of positive and negative trends. Nevertheless, the information is set out clearly and precisely, and the report as a whole makes clear the plans that Stora Enso has put in place to deliver improvements where they are needed.

In line with the requirements of EMAS, the company has committed itself to 'continuously improving its environmental performance', as well as regularly publishing specific goals and reporting on progress it has made towards reaching them.

The report also provides the name and contact number of the environmental protection manager for the Reisholz site, Heiner Grussenmeyer.

Stora Enso Reisholz's environmental statement for 2001 was validated by independent auditors TÜV Nord, and is due to be updated in December 2003. In the intervening years, the company publishes simplified annual 'environmental statements', in accordance with the requirements of EMAS.