Biodiversity

Suntory Natural Water Sanctuary

To preserve the integrity and sustainability of groundwater, Suntory Group has been cultivating forests in the watersheds around our plants as sanctuaries to nurture groundwater. These forests recharge more than twice the amount of water withdrawn by our plants in Japan.
Forests that nurture pristine groundwater are also rich in biodiversity. When the forest ecosystem is restored, the flora and fauna also begin to thrive in new ways. The Suntory Natural Water Sanctuary is managed systematically through continuous monitoring of the ecosystem, which includes plants, birds, and other wildlife.
Considering how wild birds are a barometer of environmental health, we have experts conduct a wild bird survey every year to furnish a broader understanding of the changes taking place in the entire supporting ecosystem.
At Natural Water Sanctuaries in Japan, we are carrying out an Eagle and Hawk Chick-Rearing Support Project to support the nesting and breeding of birds of prey, which are at the top of the ecological pyramid. The aim is to continue maintaining forests rich in biodiversity from the perspective of protecting birds.

30by30 Alliance for Biodiversity

In April 2022, Suntory Group joined the 30by30 Alliance for Biodiversity. The alliance is formed as a voluntary coalition of local governments, companies, and NPOs to conserve or protect at least 30% of Japan’s land and sea areas by 2030 to halt loss and restore biodiversity. Its objective is to promote and to actively communicate the initiative to expand Japan's national parks and to register socio-ecological production landscapes (satochi-satoyama) and company-owned forests in the World Database as OECMs^*.
Six of Suntory Group’s Natural Water Sanctuaries receives approval to be certified as OECM.
The six Suntory Natural Water Sanctuary sites certified as OECM are:

1. Hyogo Nishiwaki-Monryusan (Nishiwaki City, Hyogo)

2. Tokyo Akigawa (Akiruno City, Tokyo)

3. Shizuoka Oyama (Oyama Town, Shizuoka)

4. Nikko Kirifuri (Nikko City, Tochigi)

5. Ohmi (Hino Town, Shiga)

6. Akagi (Shibukawa city, Maebashi city, Gunma)

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  OECM stands for “Other Effective area-based Conservation Measures.” OECMs are areas conserved at the initiative of private organizations or areas where the conservation of nature is achieved mainly as a by-product of other management.

Publication of a biodiversity report

The “Suntory Natural Water Sanctuary Biodiversity Restoration Report” was issued in September 2022. The report is structured into two parts— a "Facts & Data" section that summarizes various issues facing Japanese forests and an “Actions” section which provides simple explanations and examples of activities taken to address these issues in the Suntory Natural Water Sanctuary.

Download the Suntory Natural Water Sanctuary Biodiversity Restoration Report

For more information on the Suntory Natural Water Sanctuary, see Natural Water Sanctuary.

Suntory’s Peatland Water Sanctuary Initiative in Scotland

Suntory Group acknowledges the immeasurable amount of learning it has received from Scotland and scotch whisky, which has been utilized in the production of whisky in Japan. Today, Suntory owns several distilleries in Scotland, including the Bowmore and Laphroaig distilleries. In Scotland, whisky is often made with water that flows through moorlands, and the peat accumulated on the moorlands plays an important role in flavoring the malt, the raw material for whisky. Suntory’s Peatland Water Sanctuary initiative started in November 2022 to protect these peatlands and conserve watersheds at various locations in Scotland. The initial peatland restoration project was begun on nearly 15ha near the Ardmore distillery in partnership with Forestry and Land Scotland, which owns the land, and the James Hutton Institute, which is assisting with the research, planning, and execution of the restoration. Restoration activities subsequently began on Islay and in northern Scotland, where peat was mined for scotch in the past, and in nature reserves in Airds Moss and the Oa, activities were launched in collaboration with the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds of Scotland. Additional activities are expected to launch, and Suntory Group aims to have restored sufficient peatlands by 2040 to equate to twice the volume of peat that Suntory Group harvests to make its scotch whiskies. The work will have a long-term positive impact on water retention and quality, and will also support carbon sequestration and biodiversity in Scotland’s natural environment.

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  Recovery work has raised the water table of
  this peatland, and restoration of marshland
  vegetation is progressing

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  Ardmore Distillery

-Sustainability Stories- The Peatland Water Sanctuary^™ Initiative: For Peat, an Important Ingredient in Whisky, and for the Future of the Planet