According to the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) Fibre Sourcing Standard, it is now recognised by the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC), in a development that the two organisations have stated will offer a tool to meet the requirements of the PEFC and avoid controversial sources in the PEFC Chain of Custody standard.
“PEFC is pleased to support initiatives of its members that are unique and innovative such as the SFI Fibre Sourcing Standard, which provides an effective mechanism to demonstrate compliance with PEFC Chain of Custody requirements concerning controversial sources at a global level, while promoting the responsible procurement of wood fibre for SFI manufacturing facilities across the U.S.A. and Canada,” Ben Gunneberg, CEO and Secretary General of PEFC International, stated in a blog belonging to PEFC.
The SFI Fibre Sourcing Standard offers an avoidance of risk that stems from controversial sources, as well as providing a mandatory practice requirement for the responsible procurement of all fibre sourced directly from forests, whether the forest has been certified or not. These sourcing requirements include a number of measures that widen biodiversity practices, protect the quality of water through the use forestry best management practices (BMPs) to protect water quality, deploy specially trained professionals for the harvesting, and reach out to the owners of smaller forests.
“The SFI Fibre Sourcing Standard is a pioneering approach that puts the responsibility on the manufacturing organisation to address its entire supply chain by promoting legal and responsible sourcing,” President and CEO of SFI Inc., Kathy Abusow, said to Woodworking Network. “The SFI Fibre Souring Standard holds the individual mills and manufacturers, who bear all the costs to certify, accountable for promoting responsible forestry, and reduces the financial burden on the small family forest owner. Given that about 90 per cent of the world’s forests are uncertified, there needs to be strong mechanisms to promote responsible procurement from these lands.”
One of the direct results from the implementation of the SFI Fibre Sourcing Standard is that there are now more than 170,000 professional, trained harvesters that understand biodiversity, water quality, and other requirements for sustainable forest practices.
PEFC is not the only organisation to have acknowledged SFI’s efforts in assuring legal and responsible procurement – The World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and Green Building Council, among others, have recognised SFI Fibre Sourcing Standard achievements.
Sources: Woodworking Network, The Sustainable Forestry Initiative Fibre Sourcing Standard
