Biomass Supplies applies for RSB Sustainability certification
Monday, 2 June 2014 00:00
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The Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials (RSB) is pleased to announce that Biomass Supplies has applied for RSB certification.
Biomass Supplies is pioneering innovative and progressive partnerships with small farmers and land owners to access biomass supply that can be used both for pellet production (an alternative to coal) and for power generation.
RSB’s planned sustainability certification will cover Gliricidia, a fast rotation coppice tree, used as a fence in Sri Lanka.
By working with smallholders, Biomass Supplies is creating new revenue streams for local farmers and helping promote local industry and employment.
In the last 12 months, Biomass Supplies has been supplying Gliricidia to two garment manufacturing companies who use the fuel wood for their biomass boilers.
The first of these companies is Brandix, Sri Lanka’s single largest apparel exporter. The Brandix factory in Polonnaruwa has been receiving regular supplies from Biomass Supplies since May 2013.
Brandix is one of the pioneers and is considered an inspiring trailblazer in eco-friendly apparel manufacture on the global stage.
The company was recently recognised as Sri Lanka’s ‘Organisation Committed to Green’ in 2013 by the Green Building Council of Sri Lanka.
Commending Biomass Supplies on its application for RSB certification, Brandix Head of Environment and Energy Management Iresha Somarathna said, “We view this certification as important to our business as Brandix encourages its suppliers to be verified as sustainable, in line with the Group’s commitment to progressively reduce its environmental footprint.”
“By committing to RSB certification, Biomass Supplies is confident that its business model and operations are compatible with the highest environmental and social standards available through voluntary certification,” said RSB Executive Secretary Rolf Hogan. “We welcome their participation and engagement with the RSB.”
“We wanted rigorous sustainability certification to verify our biomass raw material – Gliricidia – which is obtained from a myriad of small farmers. We decided to progress with RSB certification on the advice of WWF,” said Biomass Group (the parent company) Founder Lucky Dissanayake. “RSB certification will also help in our expansion plans.”
