Forestry is a major focus of the global sustainability movement because there are significant consequences to poor forestry practices, including loss of biodiversity, flooding and climate change.

Mohawk does not own or manage forest land. As a non-integrated paper manufacturer, Mohawk does not engage in timber harvesting, direct forest product procurement or wood processing. Mohawk purchases pulp from reputable sources that hold third party certification for their environmental and forest management practices. As one of the largest consumers of market pulp in the U.S., Mohawk can drive compliance through its supply chain.

FSC

We believe that FSC® is a robust forest management and certification program. With its controls at every stage of the supply chain, FSC is a reliable system for assessment and mitigation of risks regarding involvement with illegal timber harvesting. Through the FSC certification programs, the source and legality of wood fiber is well documented.

Using high amounts of post consumer waste fiber is an important way to reduce pressure on forest lands and Mohawk is a leading producer of recycled paper. We were the first paper manufacturer in the U.S. to receive Green Seal certification.  Every year we use thousands of tons of post consumer fiber in the production of our fine papers.

 

Chlorine

In the not too distant past, the production of bright white paper required the use of pulps that had been bleached with elemental chlorine. This bleaching process resulted in byproducts found to be environmentally harmful. To reduce these byproducts throughout North America, pulp producers have virtually eliminated elemental chlorine bleaching methods and have replaced them with more environmentally responsible technology, primarily "ECF" (elemental chlorine free) bleaching processes.

  • ECF (elemental chlorine free) – These are pulps or papers that may have been bleached with chlorine compounds such as chlorine dioxide (ClO2), as opposed to elemental chlorine (Cl2).
  • PCF (process chlorine free) – These are papers that contain postconsumer recycled fiber that was processed without the use of any additional chlorine or chlorine compounds. If these papers also contain a percentage of virgin fiber, the virgin fiber must have been processed without the use of any chlorine or chlorine compounds.
  • TCF (totally chlorine free) – These are pulps or papers that are bleached without the use of chlorine or chlorine compounds.