Material Issue 3

Related SDGs

Basic Policy

Against the background of concerns about resource depletion, biodiversity loss, and environmental pollution caused by harmful substances and marine plastics, it is necessary to build a circular economy that thoroughly recycles and makes effective use of resources. Circular economy is an economic model that aims to design products and services that help reduce environmental burdens, such as those imposed by waste disposal and pollution, and to continue to circulate raw materials and products at a high level.

The Sumitomo Forestry Group engages in a wide range of businesses in Japan and overseas, including the manufacture and sale of housing construction materials, forest management, renovations, greening business, real estate development, and biomass power generation, with a focus on the detached housing business. Since various resources and materials, mainly wood, are used in each of our businesses, we need to make effective use of the resources and materials, reduce waste, and promote recycling. We will realize a circular bioeconomy centered on wood by running a wood cycle for cascade utilization of timber, which is a renewable and sustainable natural resource, in the fields of forests, wood, architecture, and energy including biomass power generation and by increasing the value of wood resources. For resources other than wood, we will strive to control, reuse, and recycle waste. We will also continue to investigate the sustainability of our supply chain for the sustainable use of resources.

Impact on Society and the Environment

Management of Material Issue 3 (FY2025)

In the Mid-term Sustainability Targets Phase 2 (2025 to 2027), Material Issue 3 is roughly divided into the following three categories and managed through the annual action policies and measures adopted by the department in charge.

Reduction and Recycling of Industrial Waste

The Sumitomo Forestry Group’s final disposal amount of industrial waste was 17,344 tons in fiscal 2025 against our target of 21,213 tons, representing a 17.6% decrease compared to fiscal 2021.

We changed our method to measure the amount of waste generated at our new building construction sites in fiscal 2025. Specifically, we started to measure the amount separately for detached houses and apartment complexes and changed the measurement unit from “per building” to “per one square meter.” For new detached houses, we achieved the target of 19.2 kg/m² by recording 18.9 kg/m². For apartment complexes, we recorded 25.46 kg/m². At detached house construction sites, the use of pre-cut Kizure panels, roofs and sidings remarkably contributed to reducing the generation of waste. We also started to use pre-cut underfloor heat insulating materials in April 2026, which will help reduce waste generation by about 40 kg per building.
For apartment complexes, we are currently in the stage of measuring and identifying the actual amount of waste generated and will examine the methods to reduce the generation, for which the use of pre-cut materials is an important challenge to meet.

The recycling rate at our new housing construction sites was 96.2% and improved by 0.6 percentage point year on year, although it was slightly lower than the target of 96.3%. We will continue to give instructions on waste sorting at the construction sites and also regularly conduct examinations about the waste recycling methods and the selection of waste recycling sites in cooperation with the industrial waste disposal contractors. Additionally, we will focus more on giving instructions to the branches where the rate of mixed waste is rising and on increasing the precision of measurement at wide-area waste collection sites.

For the promotion of a circular economy, we have started to conduct examinations for the material recycling of plastic waste. In fiscal 2026, we plan to deliver blue sheets made by using materially recycled used blue sheets to construction sites. We will also consider the sorted recovery of plastic waste for material recycling.
As the challenges to meet for material recycling, the collection amount and collection costs are listed. We need to make concerted efforts across the industry, in addition to implementing measures as the Sumitomo Forestry Group. We will carry out examinations to meet these challenges.

*1Recycling rate of construction materials specified under the Construction Material Recycling Act (concrete, asphalt concrete and wood scraps)

*2Recycling rate at Sumitomo Forestry Hometech’s renovation sites; excluding debris and asbestos that are difficult to recycle

Reduction of Water Consumption

The Sumitomo Forestry Group’s total water consumption in fiscal 2025 was 2,895,000 m³. We achieved a reduction of 76,000 m³ from the target of 2,971,000 m³, which is mainly attributable to the change of the water distribution method and the installation of a flow meter for earlier detection of water leakage and water saving at Kutai Timber Indonesia (KTI) at the end of 2024 and a decrease in the sprinkler use frequency at Canyon Creek Cabinet (CCC).

*JIS Classification Type II or lower (water usage 6.5 liters or less)

Management of the Supply Chain

We started to conduct the Sustainability Procurement Survey in the housing business in 2019 and in the timber and building materials business in 2022. We have been conducting this survey on at least 80% of our suppliers in terms of the purchase amount. In fiscal 2025, we set new targets to improve the performance of priority items such as the percentage of companies that grasp their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and the percentage of companies with GHG emission reduction plans, while maintaining the implementation rate of the survey.