Nokian Tyres has outlined its efforts to tackle climate change, setting ambitious targets to reduce CO2. In May, Nokian Tyres joined the Science Based Targets initiative with the aim of establishing more precise goals, which will be assessed and approved by an external organization. The company achieved its previous target to reduce CO2 emissions across the business well ahead of schedule.
“In terms of environmental responsibility, we are considering the entire product lifecycle and all of our functions. Our target for 2020 was a 20% reduction in the CO2 emissions from our factories. By the end of 2017, we had already exceeded 36%. Joining the initiative is a natural continuation of our long-term work to protect the environment,” explained Teppo Huovila, who is in charge of the company’s sustainability efforts.
The new climate goals will be linked to the company’s value chain as well as the environmental impacts of products.
“We are continuously developing low-rolling-resistance tires, which significantly decrease the GHG emissions generated during their use. For example, the average 7% reduction of the rolling resistance of our tires sold in 2017 reduces CO2 emissions by as much as 54,000 passenger cars emissions annually,” Huovila said.
The Science Based Targets initiative encourages companies to set scientific targets for combating climate change. The initiative is a partnership between the UN Global Compact, CDP (formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project), the World Resources Institute and the World Wide Fund for Nature for promoting the best practices in setting scientific climate goals. Furthermore, it is independently assessed and approves companies’ and communities’ targets. All participating companies are listed on the Science Based Targets website.
