Sylvamo Corp

Sylvamo remains committed to operating responsibly and sustainably, and incorporates this into our strategies and everyday processes as we seek to seize opportunities, address risks and create long-term valuefor our shareholders. Our commitment to sustainability spans our value chain, from the safety of our employees, to the responsible sourcing of raw materials, to using renewable energy and ensuring the recyclability of our products. Our commitment is part of our Code of Conduct and it requires us to operate as responsible stewards for our communities and the environment. We believe that operating in this manner creates healthy communities, enhances our competitive position with our customers, increases our desirability as an investment and helps engender employee pride in the Company, thereby helping us achieve our vision to be the world’s paper company: the employer, supplier and investment of choice.

Our 2023 Sustainability Performance Review (available at sylvamo.com/us/en/sustainability) illustrates our 2023 contributions to the circular, low-carbon economy, to our employees’ safety, well-being and success, and to supporting our communities. It reflects our goal to operate as a sustainable company that generates profits for our shareholders, protects the environment, and improves people’s lives. In the 2023 Sustainability Performance Review, we highlight and report on our key initiatives for achieving that goal. We plan to report on our initiatives for 2024 in our 2024 Sustainability Performance Review, to be published in 2025. Our annual sustainability reporting includes disclosures aligned with the Global Reporting Initiative (“GRI”) and the Task Force On Climate Related Financial Disclosures (“TCFD”) frameworks(available at sylvamo.com/us/en/sustainability/reporting). We cannot guarantee that we will achieve our goals and initiatives described in our Sustainability Performance Reviews and in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Our ability to achieve them is subject to risks and uncertainties both known and unknown, including various risks noted in Item 1A. Risk Factorsand elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Sustainable Sourcing and Forest Management

Sylvamo recognizes the environmental, social and economic values of forested landscapes. We seek to play an active role in preventing deforestation and forest degradation, promoting and increasing the use of responsibly managed forests, and meeting market demand for sustainably certified products, through our efforts described below.

In addition to our Code of Conduct, our Environmental, Health, Safety and Sustainability Policy sets forth the principles we follow toensure the health and safety of all employees, contractors and visitors, improve our environmental impact and our stewardship of natural resources. Our Global Fiber Procurement Policy sets forth requirements for the wood we accept, including requirements intended to protect theenvironment and rights of indigenous peoples and local communities. Our Third Party Code of Conduct requires the parties with which we do business to comply with all laws and encourages them to reduce their impact on the environment. We make these policies available on our website.

Our operations strive to incorporate responsible forest stewardship to ensure healthy and productive forest ecosystems for generations to come. For example, wepromote healthy and productive forest ecosystems by committing to source 100% of our fiber from sustainably managed forests and aiming to conserve, enhance or restore 250,000 acres of ecologically significant forestland globally by 2030. Towards this goal, in 2024 we continued investing in reforestation in the Atlantic Forest region of Brazil and the Appalachians of the United States, through joint efforts with international and local organizations.

We maintain longstanding partnerships with several of the world’s largest and most respected environmental and conservation organizations to restore and protect forests and advance the understanding of the role of forests as natural climate solutions, including the Arbor Day Foundation, the Nature Conservancy, the World Wildlife Fund and various local environmental organizations in the communities where we live and work. We also help our suppliers with their efforts to develop actions that improve forest management and fiber procurement practices. We believe that these strategic informal partnerships are essential to achieve the scale necessary for positive long-term impact and to develop sustainable solutions that address critical regional and global forestry issues.

We support and use third-party certification of sustainable forest management through forest certification and chain-of-custody systems, and we work to continue tomeet our customer’s demand for certified-fiber products. Sylvamo follows these credible certification systems: Forest Stewardship Council®(FSC®); the Sustainable Forestry Initiative® (SFI®); and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC). In 2024, all of our sourced fiber followed the FSC®Controlled Wood Standard, and based on the latest figures available, approximately 60% of our sourced fiber was from forests certified to the FSC®, SFI® or PEFC Forest Management Standards. Additionally, nearly all of our owned forestland is certified to the FSC® (C101761) Forest Management Standard.

Reduction of Water Usage

Sylvamo is working to reduce our water usage by an incremental 25% compared to a 2019 baseline. To that end, in 2024 we conducted a thorough internal water study at our mill in Saillat, France, and shared best practices with our other mills based on the results of the study. We intend to update our progress reducing water usage at least annually on our Company website or in our Sustainability Performance Reviews.

Climate Change and Reduction of GHGs

Sylvamo recognizes that the climate is changing. The GHGs carbon dioxide and methane trap higher amounts of heat in the atmosphere than many other atmospheric gasses and remain in the atmosphere for years; therefore, we believe it is prudent to reduce those emissions. We seek to reduceour GHG emissions by working to reduce our Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions, and by advancing a lower-carbon economy by designing 100% reusable, recyclable or compostable papers that people depend on for education, communication and entertainment. Additionally, various jurisdictions where we operate have passed laws to address climate change that have an impact on us and our work to reduce GHG emissions, as described above in“-Environmental and Other Regulations -Environmental and Climate Change Regulation.”

We seek to achieve anincremental 35% reduction in our mills’ Scope 1, 2 and 3 GHG emissions by 2030, as compared against a 2019 baseline, and continue efforts to further decarbonize our operations by defining a pathway to net zero. Our GHG emissions reduction targets were validated by the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) in April 2023 and are consistent with a well below 2 degrees Celsius scenario and the Paris Agreement. The Paris Agreement impacts our mills in Europe and Brazil, due to GHG emissions reduction commitments in accord with the Paris Agreement that have been made by the respective countries in which those mills are located. Our mills in Europe may benefit from free allocation of GHG emission allowances under the EU ETS to meet GHG emissions reduction targets, subject to various factors, including that our Nymölla mill’s eligibility to participate in allocations is expected to terminate at the end of 2025, as described in“- Environmental and Other Regulations - Environmental and Climate Change Regulation”

Based on the most recent available data, Sylvamo’s mills generated at least 85% of the energy used in the mills from carbon-neutral biomass residuals, which minimizes the use of fossil fuels that our company would otherwise use in its operations. Our mill in Nymölla, Sweden, has EU Ecolabel and Nordic Swan Ecolabel certification, which are third party certifications of products that meet high environmental standards and, in the case of EU Ecolabel certification, contribute to the EU’s goal of climate neutrality by 2050.

Sylvamo participates in the Carbon Disclosure Project (“CDP”) questionnaires concerning climate change, forests and water, to quantify and provide transparencyon our environmental practices and progress. We also participate in the EcoVadis rating platform that assesses supply chain environmental, social and ethical practices. Our responses to CDP questionnaires and our EcoVadis performance overview are published at www.sylvamo.com/us/en/sustainability.

The long-term effects of climate change on the global economy, our industry and us are unclear, especially in view of the political significance and uncertainty around regulatory actions proposed or being taken to address climate change. Changes in climate where we, our customers and our suppliers operate could have an adverse impact on our business, results of operations, and financial condition, as could regulatory actions to address climate change. More information about risks related to climate change and climate change regulation is available in Item 1A. Risk Factors – “We are subject to physical, financial and reputational risks associated with climate conditions and climate change, including global, regional and local weather conditions, the availability of wood fiber, water and fuel, andthe impact of increasing regulatory and investor focus on climate change.”

Management and Board Oversight

We have a steering team for sustainability matters consisting of a cross functional group of employees and commercial leaders. The team guides the company’s sustainability and community engagement strategies and monitors progress. It is chaired by our Senior Vice President, Chief Administrative and Legal Officer (“SVP CA&LO”), the highest-ranking non-board company executive with direct oversight of climate-related issues, who reports to our CEO. We have a Chief Sustainability Officer (“CSO”) who oversees another team of employees who report to the CSO. The CSO’s team is responsible for our global sustainability strategy and initiatives, which are intended to protect the environment and improve the lives of those we interact with, while creating profit for shareowners. Our CSO reports to our SVP CA&LO. Our CSO provides regular reports to our board’s Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, which is the board committee responsible for oversight of sustainability matters, including oversight of climate-related matters.

Our sustainability efforts are carried out in all of the regions where we operate, by multiple business teams into whose responsibilities sustainability concepts have been integrated. In addition to the dedicated sustainability team of employees led by our CSO, our human resources and sourcing teams handle various aspects of sustainability programs in their respective areas. Also, designated staff at our corporate, business and facility levels help identify, prioritize and manage sustainability-related risks and opportunities, and we have a responsible operations working group made up of global manufacturing and technical experts who are focused on key operational issues related to water and GHG emissions.