PROTECTION OF BIODIVERSITY

The term biodiversity refers to diversity of ecosystems, species and genetic diversity. The biological diversity and the benefits provided by the ecosystems, such as provision of food, clean water and medicine, are essential for the survival of humanity. Nevertheless the state of the ecosystems is deteriorating dramatically. The “Living Planet Report 2020” conducted by the WWF comes to the conclusion that around 21,000 observed populations of mammals, birds, fish, amphibians and reptiles have reduced by 68% between 1970 and 2016. The main cause of the loss of biodiversity is changing land use (e.g. deforestation, intensive monocultures, urbanisation), direct exploitation of resources, for instance hunting and over-fishing, climate change, environmental pollution and invasive non-native species.

König + Neurath processes large quantities of timber and wood derivatives. To preserve the forests and support sustainable forestry, we have set up agreements with our chipboard supplier to ensure that we only accept chipboard in which the wood originates from sustainable forestry. This ensures that we are obtaining around three-quarters of our total purchased timber volume from sustainable sources. In 2022 we will expand our timber sourcing from sustainably managed forests.

We are constantly implementing measures to limit climate change, by saving energy, which enables us to reduce our CO2 emissions. With this strategy we were able to reduce our annual CO2 emissions by around 32.4% from 2015 to 2019, despite increased revenue for the same period. The ongoing improvement in energy performance is regulated by our energy management policy in accordance with DIN EN ISO 50001, a certification held by König + Neurath AG since 2015.

To minimise the impact of our work on the environment as much as we can, we have enforced a certified environmental policy in accordance with DIN EN ISO 14001 since 1998. All environmentally relevant equipment, such as the works fuel station, vehicle wash, wastewater processing plant or smoke particulate removal, are regularly monitored and kept in good technical order.