WWF Pilot Project Seeks Science-Based Targets for Land, Water, Soil Use

by | Mar 20, 2019

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Plant-based food and drink producer Alpro worked with WWF on a pilot project to create science-based targets that would allow them to measure a company’s total environmental footprint. “Science-based targets are usually set for carbon emissions, but we are going beyond that to develop them for biodiversity, land use, water, and soil nutrients,” says WWF.

The project is meant to go beyond simply aiming to minimize environmental impact. It hopes to give insight into how companies can reduce their specific environmental footprints based on the Earth’s actual capacity, rather than on general sustainability principles.

A consortium of research institutes, coordinated by sustainability consulting company Metabolic, worked with WWF Netherlands and Alpro on the project. The Setting Science-Based Targets for Nature study examines the environmental impact of parts of Alpro’s almond and soya supply chain. It provides recommendations on how Alpro can keep within the safe environmental limits set by the Planetary Boundaries framework.

The groups say the initiative is in line with the objectives of the Science-Based Targets Network, which seeks to establish a new approach to planetary resources. “Crucial to this effort is the establishment of a process for companies to ‘budget’ for other environmental impacts in the same detail as many already do for carbon emissions,” the organizations say.

Setting the Targets

The project sought to develop methodologies for measuring a company’s footprint, and also provided recommendations based on Alpro’s particular circumstances. By looking at ways to focus on the specific context of the ecosystems that the company draws on, they were able to craft science-based targets for various aspects of sustainability. For example, after assessing the freshwater balance of a selected basin, the study indicated the river system already comes under significant strain during the summer months between May and September, and climate change could make this situation worse if it alters rainfall patterns. These insights help in crafting specific targets for the farms in terms of water use.

Or, in terms of biodiversity: Alpro’s almonds come from farms located in Mediterranean forests, woodland, and scrub which are under threat, as they are below the critical tipping point of 10% vegetation cover (according to the Natural Intact Vegetation index). However, the specific areas in which the assessed farms are situated have a relatively high vegetation cover of nearly 74%. This means one high-impact way in which Alpro could benefit the environment is by introducing measures on its farms to create corridors of biodiversity to increase its connection with surrounding natural habitats.

The collective found understanding the trade-offs between boundaries is crucial: that performance in one area is linked to impacts on other boundaries. For example, Alpro’s organic farms performed better than their conventional farms on water efficiency, soil nutrient loss, and carbon emissions. However, the organic farms produced less yield per hectare of land used, so it will be important for Alpro to explore what trade-offs they can make to increase yield. This might include increasing irrigation or alternative forms of fertilizer use on organic farms that are safely within the limits for water or soil nutrient impact.

Closing the Gap

As a result of the project, Alpro and WWF Netherlands – supported by the research consortium which included Metabolic, Wageningen University, Plans, and IUCN-NL – identified a range of gaps in data that need to be filled in order to enable companies to set more precise science-based targets to reduce or mitigate their impact based on what the environment can actually handle.

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