SASB Pulp & Paper Products

1. Download the standard: Access the SASB Pulp & Paper Products standard for free at sasb.ifrs.org. Review the full set of disclosure topics and accounting metrics defined for the sector.

1. Conduct a materiality assessment: Map the SASB-defined sustainability topics (e.g., GHG emissions, water management, sustainable forest sourcing) against your company's operations to identify which metrics are most material to your business.

1. Perform a data gap analysis: Compare your current ESG data collection capabilities against the quantitative and qualitative metrics required by the standard. Identify gaps in data availability, measurement methodology, or internal reporting systems.

1. Build internal data collection processes: Work with operations, environmental health & safety, procurement, and finance teams to establish reliable data pipelines for each required metric — including Scope 1 & 2 emissions, water withdrawal, certified fiber sourcing, and waste generation.

1. Draft your disclosures: Prepare narrative and quantitative disclosures aligned with SASB's defined metrics and units of measurement. Many companies include these in their annual sustainability report, integrated report, or SEC filings.

1. Consider third-party assurance: Engage an external assurance provider (e.g., a Big 4 accounting firm or specialist ESG assurance firm) to verify your disclosed data, which increases credibility with investors and ratings agencies.

1. Publish and communicate: Include SASB-aligned disclosures in your public reporting and notify key stakeholders — investors, ESG rating agencies (MSCI, Sustainalytics), and CDP — that you are reporting against SASB standards.

1. Monitor standard updates: Track revisions issued by the ISSB and update your disclosures accordingly as the standard evolves under the IFRS Sustainability Disclosure Standards framework.

The SASB Pulp & Paper Products standard defines disclosure topics and associated accounting metrics across several sustainability dimensions material to the sector. Companies are expected to report quantitative data and contextual narrative against each metric.

Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Companies disclose Scope 1 and Scope 2 gross global GHG emissions in metric tons of CO₂ equivalent, along with the percentage covered under emissions-limiting regulations. Discussion of long-term and short-term strategies or plans to manage GHG emissions is also required.

Air Quality: Metrics cover air emissions of pollutants beyond GHG, including NOx, SOx, and particulate matter — key concerns given the chemical-intensive nature of pulp and paper manufacturing.

Energy Management: Disclosures include total energy consumed, percentage from grid electricity, and percentage from renewable sources. The standard recognizes the sector's high energy intensity and the strategic importance of energy sourcing decisions.

Water Management: Companies report total water withdrawn and consumed by region, with specific attention to water-stressed areas. Incidents of non-compliance with water quality permits are also tracked, reflecting the sector's significant water footprint.

Waste & Hazardous Materials Management: Metrics address the generation and management of hazardous waste, including pulping liquors and chemical byproducts, as well as total solid waste generated and diverted from landfill.

Supply Chain Management & Sustainable Forestry: A critical topic for the sector — companies disclose the percentage of wood fiber sourced from certified forestlands (e.g., FSC, PEFC) and the percentage from third-party certified sources. This addresses deforestation risk and biodiversity impacts throughout the supply chain.

Labor Practices: Metrics include total recordable incident rate (TRIR), fatality rate, and near-miss frequency, reflecting the sector's historically elevated occupational safety risks.

The SASB Pulp & Paper Products standard is one of 77 industry-specific standards developed by SASB and is among the most widely referenced ESG disclosure frameworks for the forest products and paper sector globally. Since the ISSB assumed stewardship of SASB standards in August 2022, the framework has gained further institutional legitimacy — IFRS S1 and S2 explicitly reference SASB standards as a source of guidance for industry-specific disclosures, significantly expanding their reach among companies reporting under IFRS jurisdictions worldwide.

Adoption is strongest among large publicly traded companies in North America and Europe, where investor pressure and regulatory requirements (such as the SEC's climate disclosure rules and the EU's CSRD) are driving demand for standardized, comparable ESG data. Major institutional investors — including BlackRock, Vanguard, and State Street — have publicly endorsed SASB standards as a baseline expectation for portfolio company reporting. ESG rating agencies such as MSCI and Sustainalytics also use SASB-aligned data in their scoring methodologies, creating a strong market incentive for adoption.

Compared to the GRI Standards, which take a broader stakeholder-impact approach, SASB's investor-focused, financially material lens has carved out a distinct and complementary niche. Many companies now report against both GRI and SASB simultaneously. The FSC certification and ISO 14001 serve different purposes — they are management system or product certifications rather than disclosure frameworks — and are not direct competitors. The primary competitive tension is with the TCFD framework and CDP disclosure, though these are increasingly seen as complementary rather than competing, with SASB providing the sector-specific metrics that TCFD and CDP reference. Demand for SASB-aligned reporting is growing, particularly as ISSB standards gain regulatory endorsement in jurisdictions including Canada, Australia, Singapore, and the UK.

SASB — the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board — was founded in 2011 in San Francisco by Jean Rogers, with a mission to develop industry-specific sustainability accounting standards for use by U.S. public companies in their SEC filings. The organization was modeled on the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) and aimed to bring the same rigor and comparability to sustainability disclosure that GAAP brought to financial reporting. The Pulp & Paper Products standard was among the first cohort of industry standards developed, with a provisional version released in 2014 following an extensive multi-stakeholder consultation process involving companies, investors, and subject-matter experts.

The standard was finalized as part of SASB's full suite of 77 industry standards, codified in the SASB Standards Codification released in 2018. A significant milestone came in 2022 when SASB merged with the Value Reporting Foundation (which had itself merged with the Integrated Reporting Framework) and was subsequently absorbed into the IFRS Foundation's newly formed International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB). This transition elevated SASB standards from a U.S.-centric voluntary framework to a globally recognized baseline for sustainability disclosure, referenced directly in IFRS S1 (General Requirements) issued in June 2023. The Pulp & Paper Products standard continues to be maintained and updated under ISSB stewardship, with ongoing revisions informed by market feedback and evolving regulatory requirements.