Sustainability and the environment: Kimberly-Clark’s green initiatives
Environmental sustainability and Kleenex® Cottonelle® Toilet Tissue
At Kimberly-Clark, we take our use of resources very seriously. When you buy Kleenex® Cottonelle®, you can be confident you’re doing your bit for the environment. As well as being one of the first Australian companies to have an environmental policy and an environmental management system, Kimberly-Clark is also committed to using sustainable materials in its manufacturing processes and maintaining our forests.
Our green approach: using sustainable forests
Did you know that Kimberly-Clark was the first toilet tissue manufacturer in Australia to be awarded PEFC accreditation for promoting sustainable forestry?
Find out more about sustainable forestry
Kleenex® Cottonelle® has PEFC environmental certification
PEFC (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification) is an independent, not-for-profit body for certifying sustainable forestry. When you see the PEFC logo on one of our products – such as on Kleenex® Cottonelle® – you can be sure that you’re minimising environmental harm – as the fibres we have used has come from forests and plantations that are sustainably managed.
Other sustainability and environmental achievements
Through ongoing research, Kimberly-Clark has made a range of landmark achievements in this area, including:
- Having certification for all three of our mills under the highest international environmental standards by independent and accredited auditors (ISO 14001:2004).
- Pioneering innovative, oxygen-based bleaching methods in Australia.
- Getting 30% of our energy from wood residues, which are greenhouse neutral and environmentally friendly.
- Installing a $3.4 million nappy reclaim unit to recycle manufacturing waste.
- For the fourth consecutive year, Kimberly-Clark has been named No. 1 in the personal products category of the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index (DJSI World). Only the top 10 percent of the world’s largest 2,500 companies qualify for this prestigious list, with companies selected according to a systematic sustainability assessment that identifies the leaders in each industry group.
Kimberly-Clark is also a foundation supporter of the Commonwealth Government’s environmental initiative: the National Packaging Covenant.
A sustainable future: Kimberly-Clark’s Environmental Vision 2010
Kimberly-Clark recently signed the second National Packaging Covenant and continued work which has been progressing since 1990 with its three-year plan known as Vision 2010. Under this plan, Kimberly-Clark is committed to:
- Improving the way we transport products – to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions.
- Cutting back on our manufacturing waste to landfill by another ten percent.
- Developing environmentally-preferred products and packaging.
- Establishing integrated environmental and safety management systems in our facilities.
- Looking at ways to use biodegradable plastics and plastics from renewable sources.
Under Kimberly-Clark’s Vision 2005 program, the company successfully improved energy efficiency by 19 percent, water efficiency by 29 per cent, and landfill waste by 30 percent.
