Water

Water is a vital element in our operations and a critical shared resource in the communities where we operate.

As a leader in sustainable manufacturing, we are committed to reducing our water consumption. We manage water responsibly by optimizing intake, increasing reuse and investing in treatment systems for the water we return to the environment. 

In 2025, we evaluated our water intensity goal and realized that we did not fully consider the physical and regulatory risks each site faces. As a result, we shifted to a total water use reduction goal, focusing our limited resources on facilities in higher risk areas. This change also helps balance operational needs with ecosystem and community considerations. 

Water Stewardship

We acquire water from three main sources: surface water, groundwater and third-party providers (local municipalities). Because we depend on water availability in all regions, we engage in water reduction efforts to support resilient ecosystems.

We can reuse water up to 10 times throughout the papermaking process before treating and discharging, and we return over 95% of it to local water sources. The rest evaporates during our use or remains as moisture content in our pulp and paper.

To meet our 2030 water reduction goal, we continue to look for ways to improve water efficiency, recycling and treatment processes.
 

Partnerships in Action

We are working with World Wildlife Fund on the Raizes do Mogi Guacu program, started in 2018, to restore native forests across the Mogi Guacu River basin, the main water source for eastern Sao Paulo, Brazil. Decades of forest loss caused have caused severe drought, affecting municipal water supplies across more than 40 cities and the stable flow that our mills rely on.

Our goal is simple: restore forests that protect the water. See how we’re doing this and making progress towards our goal of restoring 180 hectares of native forest by 2026.