Metrics and targets

[ESRS E2-3; GRI 3-3e]

See “Sustainability targets” in the management approach section at the beginning of this chapter.  All of Lenzing’s sustainability targets, including information on target setting and monitoring (ESRS 2 MDR-T 80g, 80j) can be found in the “Sustainability targets, measures and progress” section in the "ESRS 2 General disclosures” chapter.

In line with Lenzing’s sustainability strategy and in a bid to respond to ever-increasing demand for better environmental performance in the supply chain, Lenzing has set the voluntary targets for air emissions (reduction of specific sulfur emissions) and wastewater (reduction of specific COD emissions) at group level. These targets use 2014 as the baseline year, with total sulfur emissions and COD emissions from that year being the reference (see table “Absolute emissions to air” and table “Absolute emissions to water after wastewater treatment plant”). The targets are based on the performance level of EU Ecolabel and the EU Best Available Technique (EU BAT) under the EU Industrial Emissions Directive, as well as on scientific measurements. Furthermore, these targets are fully in line with the requirements of external stakeholders, including customers and NGOs, such as the Changing Markets Foundation, as well as a group of brands that have also committed to the Changing Markets Roadmap. Internal stakeholders such as the Corporate Sustainability team, the Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) team, the Operations and Commercial teams and the Board of Management were also involved in the target-setting process. In addition, a wastewater emission target (reduction of COD emissions) was also set for Lenzing’s site in Grimsby, UK. This target was defined together with the responsible authorities in the context of the implementation of the EU Best Available Techniques Reference Document (BREF; Common Waste Water and Waste Gas Treatment/Management Systems in the Chemical Sector).

Furthermore, Lenzing has defined its voluntary targets for implementing the ZDHC guidelines for both viscose/modal and lyocell operations. The ZDHC program is an industry initiative that aims to reduce the discharge of hazardous chemicals (including SoCs and SVHCs) from the textile and apparel sector and provides guidance based on best available techniques and good industry practices. The certification framework of ZDHC provides a platform (ZDHC Gateway) for monitoring, tracking, reporting, and sharing the results along the supply chain. To ensure implementation to the highest standards, ZDHC nominates authorized laboratories in various countries to conduct testing and reporting. Customers and brands play a crucial role by requesting evidence of clean production and certification, such as ZDHC. Stakeholder engagement with ZDHC for developing its guidelines and customer engagement have acted as a foundation for setting targets relating to responsible fiber manufacturing. The target-setting process is guided by Corporate Sustainability and involves other internal stakeholders, such as members of the HSE team, the Operations and Commercial teams and the Board of Management. The “ZDHC viscose” target was set for the first time in 2020 (baseline year), starting with zero viscose sites (baseline value) reporting on ZDHC wastewater and air emission guidelines, while the “ZDHC lyocell” target was set for the first time in 2022 (baseline year), starting with zero lyocell sites (baseline value) reporting on ZDHC wastewater and responsible production guidelines.

Lenzing’s target to implement the Higg Facility Environmental Module (FEM) covers all Lenzing production sites, i.e. both fiber and pulp facilities. The Higg FEM is a standardized tool designed to measure and evaluate the management practices and environmental performance of production facilities. It provides a comprehensive overview of a facility’s environmental management and impact, covering aspects such as energy use, water consumption, air emissions and waste management. In this context the “FEM” target helps to monitor, track, manage, and reduce emissions of pollutants and substances of concern. For more information on the ESRS 2 MDR-T of the “FEM” target, please refer to the “Metrics and targets” section in the “E3 Water and marine resources” chapter.

To ensure the harmonized reporting of environmental data and performance, and establishing the baseline and target progress, Lenzing has defined its Environmental Data Reporting Guideline for all production processes, which has been implemented at all sites. The guideline sets the minimum requirements and methods for environmental data monitoring, assessment, and reporting. The environmental data is collected monthly and forms the basis for all environmental performance reporting as well as for target-setting at the group- and site-level. All in this chapter defined targets are in full alignment with the key elements of the Safety, Health and Environmental Policy and the Group Environmental Policy and Standard, which provide guidance on defining measures to continuously minimize emissions, waste, and pollution.

Lenzing has no targets regarding the value chain aspects of the following impacts: “Negative impact of Lenzing’s downstream textile value chain on water pollution”; “Potential for severe negative health and environmental impacts in the event of accidents or leakage related to SoCs and SVHCs”. Lenzing has been prioritising and working on key topics in a step wise manner.

As Lenzing fibers do not release microplastics and act as an alternative to plastic fibers, Lenzing has not established targets concerning the “Positive impact on microfiber pollution as Lenzing fibers can offer an alternative and replace plastic fibers”.

Pollution of air and water

[ESRS E2-4; GRI 305-7]

The Lenzing Group does not generate or use microplastics. This is a significant opportunity for Lenzing as customers’ awareness of marine litter and microplastics grows, potentially leading to increased demand for Lenzing`s fibers.

Pollution of air and water includes the significant emissions from the Lenzing Group`s pulp, viscose/modal and lyocell production units. There are no material emissions to soil. Tables “Absolute emissions to air” and “Absolute emissions to water after wastewater treatment plant” provide an overview of the absolute emissions to air and water. The tables include the disclosures of PRTR pollutants and voluntary disclosures of sulfur emissions to air, as well as amines and sulfate (SO₄) emissions to water. Lenzing also reports selected specific emissions to air and water in tables “Specfic emissions to air” and “Specific emissions to water after wastewater treatment plant” in order to track the “Air emissions” and “Wastewater” targets, as well as the progress in lowering specific amine and sulfate emissions.

As per the ESRS, the annual emission of any PRTR pollutant by a given site is only included in the reportable Group total if the relevant emission threshold defined in EC No 166 2006 Annex II is exceeded. However, Lenzing chooses not to apply the thresholds to a) COD emissions as they are relevant for the “Wastewater” sustainability target that was established before the ESRS became applicable and b) sulfate and amine emissions to water, as well as sulfur emissions to air, as they are not listed as pollutants in the aforementioned Annex and are voluntarily disclosed.

The Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (PRTR) is a mandatory system used in the EU to track and disclose emissions of pollutants to air and water. While Lenzing’s EU sites follow the EU-wide legislation and their data reporting can be directly included in the sustainability report, the PRTR is not applicable to non-EU sites in terms of mandatory disclosures that are subject to regulatory inspection. Hence the Lenzing Group has adopted the following principle to report PRTR pollutants for sites that are outside the EU’s jurisdiction. First, the relevant pollutants were determined based on the EU sites’ disclosures as it is widely accepted that the same production processes (pulp, viscose, lyocell) have the same environmental issues, e.g. emissions. In the next step, the relevant PRTR pollutants were assessed site by site and determined for inclusion in the reporting based on the PRTR reporting threshold. The large Lenzing (Austria) site, including all main product groups and comprehensive site service activities, was used as reference for this exercise. While all non-EU sites have established environmental and pollution monitoring programs according to, and in some cases exceeding, national legislation, not all of the identified PRTR pollutants are included in these monitoring programs. In such cases, independent third-party testing (e.g. the biannual ZDHC testing results of the Nanjing (China) and Purwarkarta (Indonesia) sites), can be used to estimate whether the sites emission is above a PRTR threshold and should be included in the reported Group total. For this, the concentration of the samples is multiplied with the annual wastewater discharge to calculate yearly quantities (that can be checked against the thresholds). Some sites may not measure certain PRTR pollutants. This is because they do not generate such pollutants or because they have no related legal or permitting or self-monitoring requirements.

The methods used for quantifying the emissions are reported in the publicly available PRTR disclosures of EU sites and are based on direct and periodic measurements by internal and external laboratories. They are in line with local and EU regulations and best practices and are reported to the relevant authorities. At non-EU sites, emissions are quantified according to local permitting requirements or legal obligations, local standards, or in the absence thereof, according to Lenzing’s internal monitoring requirements.

Addressing the methodological hierarchy for the quantification of PRTR pollutants defined in the ESRS: The measurement methods are chosen according to national regulation and permitting requirements. These may prescribe or allow inferior methods relative to direct measurements. However, employing inferior methods is also necessary for some pollutants due to direct measurement technologies being unavailable. All sites follow a maintenance and calibration program for measuring instruments according to internal and external requirements. No external body other than the assurance provider validates Group-level disclosures. At the site-level however, the reporting of those pollutants that are covered by permits is validated through local authorities.

Emissions to air

The final emissions are calculated as a product of airflow and concentration.

The PRTR thresholds do not apply to the disclosure of sulfur emissions. However, the thresholds have been applied to SO_X and NO_x emissions for the first time because of the ESRS coming into force for the current reporting period. This means that sites below the threshold have not been included in the Group totals.

Air emissions are mainly attributed to the pulp and viscose processes, as well as energy generation from fuel combustion. All sites monitor all the emissions and parameters according to their respective permitting and national requirements either internally or using an external lab to ensure compliance beyond legal requirements.

Sulfur emissions have been dramatically reduced over the past decades by installing recycling and recovery systems. Reaching its “Air emissions” target in 2024, Lenzing achieved a 75 percent reduction of specific sulfur emissions to air relative to 2014. In absolute terms sulfur emissions more than halved compared to last year.

This is mainly due to the completion of the second CAP at the Purwakarta (Indonesia) site in 2023. Indeed, all of the Lenzing Group’s viscose fiber production sites (Lenzing, Austria; Nanjing, China and Purwakarta, Indonesia) are equipped with the best available waste gas purification and recovery technologies.

While all viscose production sites have continuous monitoring systems in place that are in line with local permitting and legal requirements, Lenzing also calculates the maximum air emissions via a mass-balance approach. To avoid any underreporting, Lenzing chooses to report the data from the mass-balance approach in case it returns higher values than the measurements.

Nitrogen oxides (NO_x) are linked to fuel combustion and pulp production processes. The 2024 ESRS reporting scope excludes two energy generating sites that were below the PRTR thresholds, which were included in the 2023 report. Nevertheless, the emissions have significantly increased in 2024. This is because more energy from biomass was used and more pulp was produced. The new biomass power plant in Heiligenkreuz (Austria) contributed a large share during its first full year of operation.

Sulfur oxide (SO₂) emissions occur in the pulp and viscose production processes and when sulfur containing fuel is used for energy generation. An increase in absolute SO₂ emissions was recorded in 2024 due to increased product output and energy generation. This is despite the exclusion of two sites from the reporting, whose emissions are below the PRTR threshold. However, the relative SO₂ emissions remained relatively stable across all sites.

Particulate matter is emitted during fuel combustion and pulp production. The pollutant is reported for the first year and relatively few sites exceed the PRTR threshold.

Emissions to water

The emissions to water are calculated based on the wastewater flow and concentrations of pollutants. All discharges from sites within Lenzing’s operational or financial control are reported. This includes discharges by separate legal entities being treated in the WWTP within the Lenzing (Austria) site’s operational control.

The PRTR thresholds are not applied to COD and are not applicable to amines or sulfate emissions. All other emissions are PRTR pollutants and reported for the first time in the current report. All reported values may therefore be used for year-on-year comparisons.

COD emissions originate from pulp and all fiber production processes. Their reduction is part of the Lenzing Group’s “Wastewater” target. Total emissions of COD have increased for two years due to the addition of the two production sites in Indianópolis (Brazil) and Prachinburi (Thailand), as well as production output. COD emissions, excluding these two new production sites, are relevant for the “Wastewater” target and reported in addition (see tables “Absolute emissions to water after wastewater treatment plant” and “Specific emissions to water after wastewater treatment plant”). However, due to the wastewater treatment plant upgrade at Grimsby becoming fully operational only in 2025, the target was not achieved (please see “Actions” above for more information).

Sulfate emissions may occur during fiber and pulp production. Absolute emissions slightly increased due to increased production output but specific emissions remained stable. Sulfate emissions are not pollutants in the sense of the EU PRTR and are reported voluntarily.

Amine emissions are specific to lyocell production. Lenzing monitors the emissions to water at all lyocell production facilities. Absolute and specific emissions decreased due to constant process optimization driven by cost optimization and the operational adjustments at the newest Prachinburi (Thailand) site. The Grimsby (UK) site is expected to remain the main contributor of amine emissions in the Group until the new wastewater treatment plant is fully operational.

Other PRTR pollutants included in table “Absolute emissions to water after wastewater treatment plant” are reported for the first time in accordance with ESRS requirements. The nonylphenol and nonylphenol ethoxylates (NP/NPEs) emissions thresholds are only exceeded at the Lenzing (Austria) site. The site estimates the emissions based on third party measurements (that are performed every seven years) by adjusting the measured values with the effluent quantity.

For more information about other waste streams besides wastewater and air emissions, please see the “E5 Resource use and circular economy” chapter.

Substances of concern and substances of very high concern

[ESRS E2-5]

The definition of substances of concern (SoCs) and substances of very high concern (SVHCs) are included in the ESRS Annex II. Under this definition, a list of hazard classes or hazard categories classified in Part 3 Annex VI to Regulation (EC) No.1272/2008 are outlined as criteria.

The chemicals containing SoCs and SVHCs are identified by mapping the hazard classes in the production chemical inventories from all Lenzing sites.

The amount of a SoCs or a SVHCs in a chemical mixture is calculated based on its percentage as disclosed in the Safety Data Sheet (SDS) provided by the supplier. The quantity breakdown of SoCs and SVHCs per hazard class are listed in tables “Substance of Concern (SoCs) by hazard classes” and “Substances of very high concern (SVHCs) by hazard classes”.

The total amount of SoCs is the absolute value irrespective of whether one SoCs falls under more than one hazard class (see table “Total amount of Substance of Concern”).

The metrics in this section are not validated by an external body other than the assurance provider.