Sustainable Forestry Initiative Releases New Standard

Sustainable Forestry Initiative Releases New Standard
from WhatTheyThink Going Green -A Resource for Today’s Green Business by Gail Nickel-Kailing

Sustainable Forestry Initiative® released a new forest certification standard supporting sustainable forest management. The result of an 18-month public review, the new SFI 2010-2014 Standard includes revisions that:

* Improve conservation of biodiversity
* Address emerging issues such as climate change and bioenergy
* Strengthen fiber sourcing requirements to broaden the practice of
sustainable forestry and avoid controversial or illegal offshore
fiber sources
* Embrace the Lacey Act amendments to prevent illegal logging
* Expand requirements for logger training
* Expand requirement for support for trained loggers and certified
logger programs

The Standard is based on 14 core principles (5 more than the previous standard) that promote sustainable forest management, including measures to protect water quality, biodiversity, wildlife habitat, species at risk, and forests with exceptional conservation value. The Standard also has 20 objectives, 39 performance measures, and 114 indicators.

Some of the revisions include:

* Illegal logging: Strengthens illegal logging provisions and
includes a definition of illegal logging consistent with
amendments to the Lacey Act in the US.
* Fiber sourcing: Strengthens fiber sourcing requirement. SFI
program must require the use of trained loggers and resource
professionals when fiber is sourced from lands in North America
that are not certified.
* Logger training: Has expanded logger training requirements to
address invasive exotic plants and animals, special sites, and
emerging technologies and markets such as carbon offsets and
bioenergy.
* Certified loggers: Recognizes the emergence of logger
certification programs, and requires, where possible, that program
participants promote and support these programs.
* International labor laws: Ensures that activities in SFI-certified
forests respect the rights of workers and labor representatives
according to the core conventions of the International Labour
Organization (ILO).
* Research: Expands the definition of relevant research to include
environmental and social benefits, and environmental performance
of forest products.
* Best Management Practices: Program participants must follow best
management practices, which means there are fewer issues around
water quality and soil disturbance.
* Forests with Exceptional Conservation Value: Clarifies the term
“Forests with Exceptional Conservation Value,” and makes it clear
they include areas with critically imperiled and imperiled species
and communities.
* Biodiversity: Promotes the conservation of biodiversity hotspots
and high-biodiversity wilderness areas as defined by Conservation
International.
* Emerging Topics: Recognizes that sustainable forestry makes an
important contribution to addressing climate change and adapting
to changing ecosystems.
* Biotechnology: Addresses the use of genetically modified trees
under the research objective, because genetically modified trees
are not commercially grown or available in North America.
* Public Reporting: Requirements for public reporting have become a
new objective for greater emphasis and transparency.

The SFI 2010-2014 Standard took effect on January 1, 2010 and participants have up to one year to implement the changes. The review process was launched in June 2008 and included two public comment periods and seven regional workshops.

Another View of Greenpeace - Kimberly-Clark agreemnet to use FSC certified harvests

Greenpeace Wipes It's Soft, Virgin Butt with Canada's Ancient Boreal Forests

- Against what ecological science tells us is required for global and regional ecological sustainability, Greenpeace Canada endorses continued clearcut of ancient boreal forests for paper products including toilet paper. Nothing to change as ancient boreal forests continues to be clearcut to wipe bottoms, albeit certified by FSC and Greenpeace as "well-managed".

August 6, 2009
By Earth's Newsdesk, a project of Ecological Internet (EI)
http://www.ecoearth.info/newsdesk/
CONTACT: Dr. Glen Barry, glenbarry@ecologicalinternet.org

Ecological Internet vigorously condemns Greenpeace Canada's greenwash endorsement of continued Canadian ancient boreal forest logging to make throw away paper items, including toilet paper. Yesterday Greenpeace announced a premature end to its "Kleercut" campaign against Kimberly-Clark Corporation, the maker of Kleenex, Scott and Cottonelle brand paper products, boldly proclaiming "today, ancient forests like the Boreal Forest have won."

Greenpeace's long-standing campaign against "ancient forest crimes" by Kimberly-Clark was suspended on the basis of promises that 40% of its North American tissue fiber will be either recycled or FSC certified by 2011. The company traditionally has used 3 million tones of virgin fibre a year, which will fall to 2.4 million tons if they are successful. This atrociously weak target will legitimize continued destruction of Canada's ancient forest ecosystems for throw away paper products for decades.

"In a world well past its carrying capacity, facing abrupt climate change and species and ecosystem collapse, we call upon Greenpeace to immediately disclose the ecological science that suggests primary and old growth forests can and should continue to be clearcut to wipe our asses," questions Dr. Glen Barry. "It is just like Greenpeace to half carry out a campaign, achieve partial success, claim victory and move onto a more telegenic protest opportunity to fill their coffers."

Ecological Internet calls upon Greenpeace to embrace substance over style (for a change) and immediately disassociate itself from the Forest Stewardship Council's ongoing certification of first time industrial logging of primary forests as being "well-managed" while implying sustainability.

"No one including Greenpeace can tell us how many tens of millions of hectares of primeval forest ecosystems are being destroyed under FSC's certification label for, amongst other things, toilet paper and lawn furniture. Until Greenpeace and friends stop greenwashing FSC ancient forest logging, we call upon committed forest protectors to resign their membership from Greenpeace and other ancient forest logging apologists, and to stop using virgin toilet paper, no matter how sensitive their behinds," explains Dr. Barry.

It is up to us to continue the Kleercut campaign until primary forest logging ends. This places Greenpeace in strong contention for the upcoming "Forest Greenwash" of the year award.

The Canadian Boreal Forest is North America’s largest old growth forest, and contains 25% of the world's remaining intact ancient forests. It provides habitat for threatened wildlife such as woodland caribou and a sanctuary for more than one billion migratory birds. It is also the largest terrestrial storehouse of carbon on the planet, storing the equivalent of 27 years worth of global greenhouse gas emissions.

In March 2005, Greenpeace stated: "It is an environmental crime that Kimberly-Clark, through its Kleenex toilet paper, facial tissue and napkins, is causing the destruction of one of the planet's remaining ancient forests," said Richard Brooks, Greenpeace Forests Campaigner. "Shoppers need to know that when they choose Kleenex brand products they are participating in the destruction of the Boreal forest, a natural heritage of all Canadians."

"We are calling on store managers to return this evidence of ancient forest crimes to Kimberly-Clark, the makers of Kleenex brand tissue products," added Brooks. "If consumers knew that ancient forests in Northern Ontario were being clearcut to create disposable products that are used once, and then simply thrown away or flushed down the toilet, they would be horrified."

Under the announcement made by Greenpeace, such activities will continue, albeit in a manner certified as "well-managed" by FSC. There is no such thing as ecologically sustainable or even mildly beneficial first time industrial primary forest logging, and Greenpeace should be ashamed of itself for legitimizing the trade. If you support Greenpeace, you support ancient forest logging that endangers our shared being.

###

Ecological Internet provides the world's largest and most used climate, rainforest and environment portals at http://www.climateark.org/ and http://www.ecoearth.info/ and http://www.rainforestportal.org/ . Dr. Glen Barry is a leading global spokesperson on behalf of environmental sustainability policy. He frequently conducts interviews on the latest climate, forest and water policy developments and can be reached at: glenbarry@ecologicalinternet.org

Kimberly-Clark to source fiber for tissue products from sustainably grown forests.

Kimberly-Clark has agreed to source fiber for tissue products from sustainably grown forests. Read the article and then be sure to watch the video for a chuckle.

Since 2004, Greenpeace and countless activists have asked Kimberly-Clark to save the Boreal forest. The company that makes Kleenex, Scott, and Cottonelle announced a new policy that places it among the industry leaders in sustainability.

Today Greenpeace announced the successful end of its Kleercut campaign!

Kimberly-Clark has set a goal of obtaining 100 percent of the wood fiber for its products — including its flagship brand, Kleenex — from environmentally responsible sources. By the end of 2011, the company will no longer use any pulp from the Boreal Forest unless it is Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)-certified. The policy also prevents the company from cutting endangered forests, and increases the company’s use of FSC-certified pulp and recycled fiber globally.

With this announcement, Kimberly-Clark, the largest tissue company in the world, becomes a sustainability leader. Now it’s time for Georgia-Pacific and Procter & Gamble, Kimberly-Clark’s main competitors, to create their own policies to protect ancient forests.