|
| One of the world?s largest forest certification systems, the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, SFI, from the USA, with more than 50 million hectares certified in the US and Canada, is seeking international endorsement by the PEFC Council. International Trade Strategies - ITS Global has been appointed by the PEFC Council as an external consultant to independently assess the system against the PEFC requirements. Part of the assessment procedure is a 60 day global public consultation period, in which all interested parties and individuals are invited to comment on the SFI system.
William Banzhaf, President of the Sustainable Forestry Board representing SFI, explained the reasons for seeking PEFC endorsement: "Forest certification today is an international field, and although the Sustainable Forestry Initiative is among the largest forest certification systems globally, our importance in the marketplace could diminish, if we were not seen as compatible with international standards. We believe that PEFC has become the worldwide standard for mutual recognition, and PEFC endorsement will not only help our program participants and certificate holders to demonstrate their corporate social responsibility but guarantee them access to international markets for certified products."
"A vital element of the PEFC endorsement process is the public consultation period, to ensure that everyone's views are taken into consideration", Mr Ben Gunneberg, Secretary General of the PEFC Council explained. "The public consultation period for SFI starts today, and everyone interested in forests and forest certification can comment on the SFI system. Its complete documentation is available at the PEFC website and I invite everybody to send their comments directly to the appointed independent consultant, International Trade Strategies - ITS Global, by 20 September 2005."
The SFI forest certification system can be reviewed under: http://www.pefc.org
For more information please contact:
Consultants
International Trade Strategies Pty Ltd - ITS Global
Mr Alan OxleyLevel 2
60 Collins Street
Melbourne, Victoria 3000
Australia
Tel. +61 3 9654 8309
Fax. +61 3 9654 4922
Email: aroxley@attglobal.net
Applicant
Sustainable Forestry Initiative SFI
Mr William Banzhaf
1800 N. Kent Street, Suite 1120
Arlington, Virginia 22209
USA
Tel +1 703 797 2506
Fax +1 703 525 4610
Email: banzhafb@aboutsfbnet.org
http://www.aboutsfb.org
PEFC Council
Mr Oliver Scholz
17, rue des Girondins
L-1626 Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Tel +352 26 25 90 59
Fax +352 26 25 92 58
Email: pefc@pt.lu
http://www.pefc.org
|
|
|
Editor Notes
Forest Certification
Forest certification is a process which provides an assurance mechanism to purchasers of wood and paper products that the wood used in the products comes from sustainably managed forest. Sustainably managed forest are those whose management implements performance standards based on internationally agreed environmental, social and economical requirements.
PEFC (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification schemes)
PEFC is a framework for the mutual recognition of credible national or regional forest certification schemes that have been developed based on internationally recognised requirements for sustainable forest management. Since its launch in 1999, PEFC has become the largest forest certification umbrella organisation covering national schemes from all over the world, delivering hundreds of millions of tonnes of wood to the processing industry and then onto the market place from over 123 million hectares of certified forests. PEFC has strong grass roots support from many stakeholders including the forestry sector, governments, trade associations, trade unions and non-governmental organisations.
|
|
