Read the latest blogpost on goodforforests.com. Nadine Block, SFI Senior Director of Government Outreach, talks about a recently published op-ed that advocates for an inclusive LEED rating system.

Last week, The Oregonian published an op-ed written by four leaders in Oregon’s forestry community, including State Forester Marvin Brown, who also serves as board chair for SFI. Other signatories include Clint Bentz, David Ford and Steve Wilson. These experts cite benefits for Oregon’s forests, the economy and green building in the state as reasons for supporting the presence of multiple forest certification programs.

They write, “With a lifetime of first-hand experience and extensive background in the application of forest certification programs in our state, we find it bewildering that the Green Building Council has not opened its LEED policy to all credible forest certification programs … In Oregon, our forests and communities benefit from the improvements resulting from the work of all organizations that certify sustainable forest practices.”

Read more.

Printable English PDF, click here
Printable French langugage PDF, click here

Traceability Program Encourages Chain-of-Custody-Certification in Quebec

August 18, 2010 – Sustainable Forestry Initiative Inc. (SFI) and PEFC Canada are applauding a program in the Province of Quebec that will encourage more companies to use third-party certified wood products.

Through the $4.6-million Forest Products Traceability Program, a pilot project administered by the Quebec Wood Export Bureau and funded by the Canadian and Quebec governments, Quebec companies are being offered customized training and coaching services so they can establish a traceability chain for their products – including help to prepare for chain-of-custody certification or pursue multiple certifications.

Close to 200 wood manufacturing and remanufacturing companies have already expressed interest in pursuing or expanding chain-of-custody certification – including sawmills, and producers of lumber, furniture, flooring, windows and doors.

“The Forest Products Traceability Program reinforces the growing support and recognition for third-party forest certification, and helps to meet the growing demand for wood products from legal, responsible sources,” says John Dunford, Chairman of PEFC Canada, whose members implement the CSA Sustainable Forest Management Standard.

“This will both raise awareness across the supply chain of the benefits of third-party forest certification, and encourage more companies to seek multiple chain-of-custody certifications – increasing supply options for customers,” says SFI President and CEO Kathy Abusow.

Just 10 per cent of the world’s forests are certified, and about a third of these certified lands are in Canada. Canada has close to 150 million hectares of certified forests, and more than three quarters are certified to the SFI and CSA standards. The two programs also account for about two-thirds of Quebec’s certified lands.

The three independent certification schemes used in Canada – CSA, SFI and the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) – all promote sustainable forest management by requiring that harvested areas are reforested; laws are obeyed; biological diversity is conserved; wildlife habitat, soils and water resources are maintained; and timber harvesting is sustainable. The SFI and CSA standards are both endorsed by the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC), the world’s largest forest certification endorsement organization.

Chain-of-custody certification tracks wood products from a certified forest as well as any uncertified sources, to ensure their integrity. The FSC and SFI programs have on-product labels, and CSA uses the PEFC label.

For information:

Sustainable Forestry Initiative www.sfiprogram.org
PEFC Canada www.pefccanada.org
Quebec Wood Export Bureau Chain-of-Custody Certification Program for Wood Products  http://quebecwoodexport.com/eng/chain-of-custody/program.htm
Government of Quebec, http://news.gc.ca/web/article-eng.do?m=/index&nid=544189
Government of Canada, http://www.actionplan.gc.ca/eng/media.asp?id=1509

Read the latest blog post on goodforforests.com. Jason Metnick, SFI Senior Director of Market Access and Product Labeling, gives an overview of the upcoming Graph Expo Virtual Preview.

SFI is excited to take part in GRAPH EXPO 2010, a show for printers, publishers and creative services professionals. The physical show takes place in Chicago in early October, but a virtual sneak preview is scheduled for this Thursday, August 19! This free online event gives attendees a chance to chat live online with SFI staff and learn the SFI program, explore trends in forest certification, chain-of custody certification and on-product labeling. We encourage you to register to attend.

Read more.

Read the latest blog post on goodforforests.com.  Jason Metnick, SFI Senior Director of Market Access and Product Labeling, recaps a recent article about paper certifications that appeared in The Hard Copy Supplies Journal.

The Hard Copy Supplies Journal from Lyra Research recently took a close look at steps papermakers are taking in regards to certification with SFI and FSC, in addition to other forest certification programs. The article, titled “Environmental Certification on Paper: A Look at Who Is Using FSC and SFI in North America,” construes an important message—multiple programs help better achieve widespread responsible forest management.

Several interviews with papermakers were conducted for the article.  Boise Paper, Domtar, Finch Paper, International Paper, Verso Paper and other paper companies use multiple certification systems, including SFI and FSC. A variety of reasons for holding multiple certifications were addressed.

Read more.

Read the latest blog post on goodforforests.com.  Allison Welde is SFI Director, Conservation Partnerships and Communications, and identifies areas of potential collaboration with conservation groups and other SFI stakeholders.

If anyone ever asks you why the SFI Standard has objectives to conserve working forests, tell them to take a take a look at these pups on the cover of the third quarter report of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Red Wolf Recovery Program. The red wolf is one of the most endangered canids in the world, and the territory of one of the reintroduced packs includes working forest land owned by Weyerhaeuser.

Red wolves (Canis rufus) were once common across the eastern and south-central United States but fell victim to predator control programs and loss of habitat. To protect the species from extinction, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service captured as many as possible in the 1970s so they could breed them in captivity and reintroduce them. The Service found 17 pure red wolves, and 14 of them became founding members of the captive-breeding program, which means they are ancestors of all red wolves existing today.

Read more.

Read the latest blog post on goodforforests.com.  Jason Metnick, SFI Senior Director of Market Access and Product Labeling, recaps his recent radio interviews discussing the impact of the USGBC’s current certified wood credit policy on North American lumber.

I recently had the pleasure of taking part in a series of radio interviews across the U.S. to explain the importance of opening LEED to all credible forest certification standards. The reporters and talk show hosts I spoke to were very engaged and concerned about the impact on their states. This was the case on stations from Arkansas to Michigan to Oregon to Mississippi, and places in between.

Read more.

Read the latest blog post on goodforforests.com. Nadine Block, who manages Government Outreach for SFI, gives an overview of the White House Forum on Federal Leadership and Sustainable Building she recently attended.

I recently had the honor of participating in a White House Forum on Federal Leadership and Sustainable Building.

A number of Administration leaders spoke, including Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis and the Government Services Administration Administrator Martha Johnson. Following the speeches, there were multiple panel discussions centered on sustainable building issues. Topics discussed included the role of public-private partnerships, as well as the role of government in incentivizing green building.

Read more.

Read the latest blog post on goodforforests.com.  Nadine Block, who manages Government Outreach for SFI, shares announcement of world-wide support for USGBC to open its LEED standard.

The call for a change in the LEED standard is truly global.  Twelve nations have urged USGBC to end LEED’s discrimination against wood and accept all credible forest certification standards.

In a July 22nd press release, the international non-profit Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC), a leading umbrella organization that endorses national forest certification systems, stated:  “Standards from Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Malaysia, the Slovak Republic, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States, along with forest industry associations and companies from many of these countries, have joined North American elected and government officials, professional foresters and other leaders who have told USGBC that  in order to increase the use of wood in buildings, all credible certification systems, including PEFC and FSC, need to be accepted.”

Read more.

Forest certification standards from twelve nations have called on the USGBC to end its discrimination against wood and accept all credible sustainable forest certification standards. The certification programs pointed out that wood is one of the best environmental choices for construction the best environmental choices for construction, as long as it is from a responsible source – and that fibre certified to the 26 national forest certification programs recognized by the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) meets this demand.

Currently, the USGBC’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) rating tool only recognizes wood certified to Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) standards. The USGBC is involved in a process to evaluate forest certification programs, and recently released a fourth round of draft benchmarks for public comments.

“Less than 10 per cent of the world’s forests are certified, yet LEED does not recognize the more than two thirds of the world’s certified forests that meet PEFC’s Sustainability Benchmarks,” said PEFC International Secretary General Ben Gunneberg. “The United Nations has warned that by giving exclusive recognition to one forest certification brand, green building standards may help drive demand for these brands at the expense of wider appreciation for the environmental merits of wood.”

Standards from Australia, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Malaysia, the Slovak Republic, Spain, the United Kingdom and the United States, along with forest industry associations and companies from many of these countries, have joined North American elected and government officials, professional foresters and other leaders who have told USGBC that in order to increase the use of wood in buildings, all credible certification systems, including PEFC and FSC, need to be accepted.

More than 5,800 people from around the world, including countries such as Australia, Austria, the Netherlands, Sweden, Italy, Malaysia, Spain and the United Kingdom, have signed an on-line petition (www.ipetitions.com/petition/leed) posted by the Sustainable Forestry Initiative program, a PEFC member that has forests across Canada and the United States certified to its forest management standard.

Non-profit PEFC is an umbrella organization that endorses national forest certification systems developed through multi-stakeholder processes and tailored to local priorities and conditions that meet PEFC’s rigorous requirements. About 543 million acres/220 million hectares are certified to national standards endorsed by PEFC, and none are eligible for the LEED credit. This includes the 377 million acres/152 million hectares – about 68 per cent of the total – located in North America.

Mr. Gunneberg said today that USGBC must recognize the benefits of building with wood if it wants to demonstrate environmental leadership. “This means encouraging the use of wood through LEED by allowing credits for wood certified to all standards recognized by PEFC and FSC, and by increasing the number of credits builders can score for using timber,” he said. “To qualify for one LEED credit, wood must comply with 81 individual benchmarks – something no other building material is required to demonstrate.”

Buildings are of fundamental importance in the climate change debate as they account for almost 40 per cent of the total carbon dioxide emissions in the United States. Studies estimate that carbon dioxide emissions wood-based buildings are 20 to 50 per cent lower than emissions associated with comparable steel- or concrete-based buildings.

Antonio Brunori, National Secretary of PEFC Italy, told USGBC his organization has been working since 2001 to promote wood from responsibly managed sources as one of the best environmental choices for construction. “If the USGBC wants to demonstrate real leadership it will finally do the right thing and accept all credible forest certification programs, allowing builders and architects choice when it comes to building sustainably,” he said.

Some of the certification programs noted that green building rating tools in their countries promote the use of wood by accepting all credible certification programs. “The Green Building Council of Australia made the right decision when it determined that both the FSC and PEFC satisfy the essential criteria identified as necessary to be eligible for its Green Star Timber credit,” said Kayt Watts, Chief Executive Officer of the Australia Forestry Standard Ltd. “It’s time for the U.S. Green Building Council to do the same.”

Further Information
PEFC is the world’s largest forest certification system and the certification system of choice for small- and family-forest owners. An international non-profit, non-governmental organization, PEFC is dedicated to promoting Sustainable Forest Management through independent third-party certification. More info: www.pefc.org

Contact
Thorsten Arndt
Head of Communications
PEFC International

Tel: +41 22 799 4540
Email: info@pefc.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

July 15, 2010

Contact: Sue McMillan

SFI Director, Marketing

778-433-2144

Pressure Mounts on USGBC to Open LEED to SFI, Other Credible Standards

Members of Congress Weigh In as USGBC Receives Petition with Nearly 6,000 Signatures

WASHINGTON – In a letter steered by Congressmen Kurt Schrader (D-OR) and Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) to the U.S. Green Building Council, 79 members of the U.S. House of Representatives, representing 35 different states, have urged the organization to “accept all credible forest certification systems for qualification under the LEED rating system” including the Sustainable Forestry Initiative. On the heels of the letter from this bipartisan group of Members of Congress, USGBC today received a petition with nearly 6,000 signatories calling for LEED recognition of all “wood and paper products certified to independent, respected and credible standards including SFI, ATFS, CSA, FSC, and PEFC.” In addition, six members of Congress have sent their own letters urging an inclusive LEED policy.

“From the halls of Congress to other elected officials across North America to architects, builders, family tree farmers and forestry and sustainability experts around the world, the support for a change in LEED has grown exponentially,” said Kathy Abusow, President and CEO of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative® (SFI Inc.). “Wood should be recognized for its environmental merits, and third-party certified forest products should be given additional credit.”

More than three quarters of certified forests in North America are certified to standards not currently recognized by USGBC. The letter from the House members states that maintaining the status quo will mean builders seeking LEED certification “would be discouraged to use third-party certified SFI and ATFS products” grown in the U.S., while opening LEED to other forest certification programs “could stimulate the market for American produced forest products and the communities and jobs that depend on both.” In a letter to USGBC President Rick Fedrizzi that was delivered with the SFI petition, Abusow wrote that it has “stimulated a tremendous outpouring of support, tapping into a broad and diverse community” and that “it’s difficult to ignore the voices of almost 6,000 people from around the world who took the time to respond.”

U.S. Governors and Canadian Officials Support Opening LEED

In addition to the petition signers and Members of Congress, 10 U.S. Governors – representing Arkansas, Idaho, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Oregon, Virginia and Washington – have written letters to the USGBC to voice their concerns over the current approach to wood product certification. The Canadian Council of Forest Ministers as well as individual provincial ministers have also written letters to the USGBC to show their support for all credible forest certification standards. To see a complete summary of the professional organizations and governments that have chimed in on this issue, visit sfiprogram.org/leed.

Global Recognition of Multiple Credible Certification Standards

Numerous green building rating systems around the globe have recognized all credible forest certification programs. This includes ANSI/ICC 700-2008 National Green Building Standard, ANSI/GBI Green Building Assessment Protocol for Commercial Buildings, Built Green Canada, CASBEE in Japan, BREEAM in the United Kingdom and the Australian Green Building Council’s Green Star Program. In addition, green building codes, including the draft International Green Construction Code (IgCC) and ASHRE 189.1, also recognize multiple forest certification programs.

“The road through the USGBC review process has not been short or uncomplicated, and in the end, we hope the organization gets past this outdated process and the politics around the LEED forest certification policy. For the sake of our forests, our communities, the tens of thousands of family foresters who make their livelihoods from forestry, and the future of green building across North America and globally, it is time for USGBC to do the right thing and recognize all credible forest certification standards, including SFI, ATFS, PEFC, CSA and FSC,” said Abusow. “It’s what other green building programs and codes globally already have applied. Multiple forest certification programs push each other to do better, and they serve different needs.”

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About SFI Inc.

SFI Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit charitable organization, and is solely responsible for maintaining, overseeing and improving the Sustainable Forestry Initiative program (sfiprogram.org), that is internationally recognized and among the largest in the world. It is one of the fastest-growing forest certification programs with close to 200 million acres/80 million hectares of SFI-certified forests across North America. The SFI Standard also includes unique fiber sourcing requirements that promote responsible forest management on all suppliers’ lands. SFI chain-of-custody certification tracks certified, uncertified and recycled content as applicable in the product. The SFI forest standard is endorsed by the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification, a global umbrella organization that has strict requirements for endorsement. SFI Inc. is governed by a three-chamber board of directors representing environmental, social and economic sectors equally.