In Germany, the SUSTAINABLE RESOURCES Verification Scheme (SURE) continues to be a sure thing for Mercer Timber Products GmbH, the German sawmilling subsidiary of US-headed forest industry major Mercer International Inc.
The SURE certification scheme offers bioenergy producers the ability to prove that the bioenergy they produce meets the sustainability requirements of the Biomass Sustainability Ordinance (BioSt-NachV).
Mercer Timber Products (Mercer Timber) has deliberately chosen SURE certification as it directly supports and underlines its “Mercer value of Sustainability.”
SURE is a full-scope system, meaning SURE enables the certification of the entire supply chain, starting with biomass production, processing, and transportation, up to the use of biomass for power and heat generation in biomass and biogas plants, Mercer said in a statement.
The company implemented a process that ensures compliance with SURE requirements. During a certification audit, this process and the documentation were successfully verified for the first time in 2021.
Since 2021, we have been SURE-certified and can prove that our biomass fuel has its origin in sustainable forest management. Our production process produces, among other things, residual wood chips, sawdust, and bark. The residual bark is fed to our biomass power plant for energy recovery. Sawdust, crosscut wood, and woodchips can also be used as fuel, the company said.
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Forest chips, landscape maintenance material, bark, and cross-cut wood are materials the company purchases from other producers to add to its fuel supply.
As part of SURE, the company has committed to excluding suppliers who are neither certified nor have submitted a declaration of voluntary commitment.
With the help of this self-commitment declaration, the supplier declares that the fuels they supply to us originate from sustainable forest management (SFM).
SURE provides the opportunity for group certification for the area of forest biomass and waste and byproduct producers. This means that suppliers who deliver forest biomass to Mercer through a self-commitment declaration are also audited in a supplier audit.
For this purpose, the auditor conducts an on-site audit of Mercer Timber’s fuel suppliers to make sure that its solid biomass meets both the sustainability criteria and the certification requirements.
With SURE certification, Mercer Timber Products is committed to displaying the full supply chain of our fuel, illustrating that the biomass we use comes from sustainable forest management. From a log’s origin to the fuel used in our power plant, we are able and proud to provide complete traceability, ended the statement.