Copel received last Wednesday (12/04), for the first time, the maximum award of the Paraná Climate Seal, a government initiative to combat climate change and increase economic competitiveness in the context of a low carbon economy.

The Paraná Paraná 2020 Seal Award awarded 46 companies that voluntarily decided to measure, disclose and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which cause global warming and climate change. The event is an initiative of the State Secretariat for Sustainable Development and Tourism (SEDEST-PR) and the Federation of Industries of the State of Paraná (Fiep).

The sixth edition of the award points to growth in the development of corporate inventories of greenhouse gas emissions. This year, 115 industrial units aggregated in 46 companies were awarded the seal, representing 26% of emissions in the industry of Paraná. In 2015, when the award was created, 21 organizations were awarded, which at the time represented 7% of industry emissions in Paraná.

Sustainable energy 

The online ceremony was attended by the president of Fiep, Carlos Valter Martins Pedro, who highlighted the relevance of the award in the corporate sector. "The value that we have of an action like this is very high, this care with sustainability has taken more and more space in the business environment, with more companies involved", said Carlos Valter Martins Pedro when starting the event.

The president of Instituto Água e Terra, Everton Souza, also confirmed the significance of the award. “There are almost 50 companies awarded this year, it is the largest adhesion to the seal since 2015, which shows that our environmental policy is even closer to the productive sector, reflecting a market need, and we wish that more organizations are present in 2021” , declared Everton Souza.

To complete the opening of the award, the secretary of Sustainable Development and Tourism in Paraná, Márcio Nunes, announced a novelty: the Descomplica Energia Sustentável program, which will provide subsidies for the installation of photovoltaic solar panels and wind sources. “In the same way that we launched Descomplica Rural, a program that brought agility to the environmental licensing processes in the field, now we are going to launch another program, focused on the generation of sustainable energy”, said Márcio Nunes.

Paraná Plus Climate Seal 

The Paraná Paraná Seal Award has three categories that enable the company's commitment to sustainable development to be demonstrated to customers, suppliers and society in general.

Copel was awarded with the maximum award, the Clima Paraná Plus Seal, to companies that submit Emissions Inventories for verification by an independent audit, accredited by Inmetro, proving a reduction in emissions.

For Copel's superintendent of Corporate Sustainability and Corporate Governance (CSG), Luisa Cristina Tischer Nastari, the company's track record in the area of sustainability is considerable and is reflected in obtaining the seal.

"Copel has been working for a long time in the area of sustainability and climate change, so it is a great satisfaction for us to be awarded the seal, so we thank Fiep and the Secretariat for this recognition", said Luisa Nastari.

The other two categories are the Paraná Original Climate Seal, for companies that prepare inventories of greenhouse gas emissions and submit them to SEDEST validation; and the Paraná Paraná Clima Seal, for companies that submit Emissions Inventories for verification by an independent audit, accredited by Inmetro.