7.4.6.2 Emission reduction potential

Because of increased use of biomass and energy efficiency improvements, the GHG emissions from the pulp and paper industry have been reduced over time. Since 1990, CO₂ emission intensity of the European paper industry has decreased by approximately 25% (WBCSD, 2005), the Australian pulp and paper industry about 20% (A3P, 2006), and the Canadian pulp and paper industry over 40% (FPAC, n.d.). Fossil fuel use by the US pulp and paper industry declined by more than 50% between 1972 and 2002 (AF&PA, 2004). However, despite these improvements, Martin et al. (2000) found a technical potential for GHG reduction of 25% and a cost-effective potential of 14% through widespread adoption of 45 energy-saving technologies and measures in the US pulp and paper industry. Möllersten et al. (2003) found that CO₂ emissions from the Swedish pulp and paper industry could be reduced by 0.5 to 5.0 MtCO₂/yr (0.14 to 1.4 MtC/yr) at negative cost using commercially available technologies, primarily by generating more biomass-based electricity to displace carbon-intensive electricity from the grid. The large variation in the results reflected varying assumptions about the carbon intensity of displaced electricity and the impacts of ‘industrial valuation’ compared with ‘societal valuation’ of capital. Inter-country comparisons of energy-intensity in the mid-1990s suggest that fuel consumption by the pulp and paper industry could be reduced by 20% or more in a number of countries by adopting best practices (Farla et al., 1997).

7.4.7 Food

Most food industry products are major commercial commodities, particularly for developing countries, and are quite energy-intensive. The most important products from a climate perspective are sugar, palm oil, starch and corn refining, since these can be a source of fuel products. The sugar cane industry produces 1.2 Gt sugar/yr. (Banda, 2002) from about 1670 mills, mostly located in tropical developing countries (Sims, 2002). Edible oils are another significant product, the exports of which support many developing country economies. Malaysia, the world’s largest producer and exporter of palm oil, has 3.5 Mha under palm oil production (UNDP, 2002), whilst Sri Lanka, the world’s fourth largest producer of coconut oils, has 0.4 Mha under cultivation (Kumar et al., 2003).

Corn refining, including wet corn milling, has been the fastest growing market for US agriculture over the past twenty years (CRA, 2002). Further growth is projected as a result of the demand for ethanol as an automotive fuel. Corn wet milling is the most energy-intensive food industry, using 15% of total US food industry energy (EIA, 2002). Over 100 technologies and measures for improving energy efficiency of corn wet milling have been identified (Galitsky et al., 2003).