Utilizing Timber from Company-Owned Forests for Logistics Pallets, Contributing to Sustainable Use of Timber Resources

Mitsubishi Materials Corporation owns around 13,000 ha of forestland (Materials' Forest) in Japan, mainly in Hokkaido, making us one of the largest owners of forestland in the country. We previously began acquiring forests for the purpose of supplying wooden supports for our own mines and coal mining activities. Today, however, we aim to manage forests so as to fully demonstrate their ecosystem services (public functions). In Hokkaido, we obtained forest certification under the SGEC*1 for 10,000 ha across eight forests on September 1, 2015, as third-party evaluation of our efforts toward sustainable forest management. Timber is an outstanding sustainable resource. We produce approximately 10,000 m³ of timber every year and supply the timber to society as raw materials and fuels for a variety of products, from building materials to woody biomass fuels. We also supply timber from our company-owned forests in visible forms. While we have already practiced cyclical use internally by utilizing this timber for tables in the Company cafeteria of the head office, as well as the office furniture, etc., we have begun manufacturing wooden pallets using timber grown in the Materials' Forests for logistical purposes, and have started using them at our Wakamatsu Plant (Aizu-wakamatsu City, Fukushima), where our copper products are manufactured.

In addition to being easy to repair and refurbish, wooden pallets can be recycled after use into wood chips, fuel, compost, etc. Furthermore, since their production consumes less energy and emits fewer CO₂ compared to plastic pallets, this initiative will promote the circular use of wood resources and contribute to the development of a sustainable logistics system that we are striving to achieve.

Mitsubishi Materials Group has established "For people, society and the earth, circulating resources for a sustainable future" as "Our Commitment" and we will continue to carry out various initiatives aimed at realizing a decarbonized society.

Copper processing facility: Wakamatsu Plant

(*)Sustainable Green Ecosystem Council endorsed by Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification schemes
(Sustainable Green Ecosystem Council):
Established in 2003. In June 2016, SGEC certification became an international certification through mutual recognition with PEFC, a European certification body.

[Related information]

Materials' Forest: URL: https://ir.mmc.co.jp/en/sustainability/environment/forest_resource.html

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