Protecting natural resource availability and quality

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BIER member companies acknowledge the important role that they play in understanding, protecting, and enhancing the services and biodiversity that ecosystems provide. Recognizing and integrating the value provided by nature into decision making and business planning is an essential element of a sustainability strategy. Through direct operations, by engaging upstream with communities and suppliers, and working downstream with customers, consumers and other partners, BIER member companies strive to preserve vital ecosystems through the following set of guiding principles.  

 

Ecosystem Services Guiding Principles

 

OPTIMIZE OPERATIONS

- Optimize the efficient usage of natural resources with an emphasis

  on freshwater sources, agricultural crops and forest products.

- Minimize wastes released to nature.

- Increase reuse and recycling of packaging materials.

 

PROTECT ECOSYSTEMS AND BIODIVERSITY

- Integrate ecosystem service parameters into freshwater supply,

  agricultural crop, forest and extractive product sustainability initiatives.

- Invest in protection of ecosystems and biodiversity through human

  and financial capital.

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RECHARGE NATURAL RESOURCES

- Evaluate and address opportunities to restore natural sources.

- Pursue wastewater treatment strategies that return equal or improved

  water quality back to the ecosystem.

 

CONNECT ALONG THE VALUE CHAIN

- Engage with stakeholders along the entire value chain to

  build collaborative solutions.

- Monitor and communicate progress in achieving these principles.

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