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On May 17, 2010, the 21 member companies of the Forest
Products Association of Canada (FPAC), and nine leading
environmental organizations, unveiled an unprecedented
agreement – the Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement – that
applies to 72 million hectares of public forests licensed to
FPAC members. The Agreement, when fully implemented, will
conserve significant areas of Canada’s vast Boreal Forest,
protect threatened woodland caribou and provide a
competitive market edge for participating companies.
Under
the Agreement FPAC members, who manage two-thirds of all
certified forest land in Canada, commit to the highest
environmental standards of forest management. Conservation
groups commit to global recognition and support for FPAC
member efforts. The Agreement calls for the suspension of
new logging on nearly 29 million hectares of Boreal Forest
to develop conservation plans for endangered caribou, while
maintaining essential fiber supplies for uninterrupted mill
operations.
The Agreement identifies explicit
commitments for both sides and sets out a
plan, which includes:
- The development and implementation
of world-leading forest management and
harvesting practices;
- The completion of joint proposals
for networks of protected areas and the
recovery of species at risk including
woodland caribou;
- A full life cycle approach to forest
carbon management; and
- Support for the economic future of
forest communities and for the
recognition of conservation achievements
in the global marketplace.
Signatory environmental organizations,
FPAC, and the Association’s companies have
begun meetings with provincial governments,
First Nations and local communities across
the country to seek their leadership and
full participation in advancing the goals of
the Agreement.
Forestry Companies
Participating in the
Agreement:
AbitibiBowater, Alberta
Pacific Forest Industries,
AV Group, Canfor, Cariboo
Pulp & Paper Company,
Cascades Inc., DMI, F.F.
Soucy, Inc., Howe Sound Pulp
and Paper, Kruger Inc., LP
Canada, Mercer
International, Mill & Timber
Products Ltd, NewPage Port
Hawkesbury Ltd, Papier
Masson Ltée, SFK Pulp,
Tembec Inc., Tolko
Industries, West Fraser
Timber Co. Ltd, Weyerhauser
Company Limited
Environmental
Organizations Participating
in the Agreement:
Canadian Boreal Initiative,
Canadian Parks and
Wilderness Society, Canopy,
the David Suzuki Foundation,
ForestEthics, Greenpeace,
Ivey Foundation, The Nature
Conservancy, and the Pew
Environment Group’s
International Boreal
Conservation Campaign.
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