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SCA is setting aside trial sites in the Sörgraninge conservation park for continuous cover forestry (CCF). The trial sites are part of a collaboration between SCA and the Swedish Forest Agency and will be used for training and follow-up to provide more knowledge of CCF methods. Continuous cover forestry is a method of harvesting that seeks to avoid clearfelling. SCA applies continuous cover forestry (CCF) methods on some of its forest land where there are special reasons for not carrying out regular harvesting operations. One example is sites that require alternative interventions in order to preserve environmental or cultural heritage values, or to promote recreation and reindeer husbandry. CCF methods includes group selection, where groups of trees are harvested to create gaps for new forest stands, or making shelters of trees where larger trees are retained to promote regeneration.

Hosted in Tokyo on 24 June, the SGEC/PEFC Forest Certification Forum commemorated our 20th anniversary and celebrated the enduring role of forest certification in improving the social and environmental conditions of the world’s forests. The Sustainable Green Ecosystem Council (SGEC) is our PEFC national member for Japan. For Japan, as for the rest of the world, consumers and industry alike are increasingly demanding the materials they use and buy are certified as originating from sustainably managed forests. The country is therefore experiencing a rising interest and demand for the certification of its forests. “With the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games approaching, the PEFC endorsement of the Japanese forest certification system means this, and other construction projects, can benefit from certified timber, provided locally through SGEC,” said Ben Gunneberg, PEFC International CEO. Click Read More below for additional information.

American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) President and CEO Donna Harman issued the following statement regarding the European Commission's recent proposal to integrate land use and forestry sector into its Climate and Energy Framework. “The European Commission (EC) recently released its proposal to integrate the land use and forestry sector (LULUCF) into the European Union's 2030 Climate and Energy Framework. The EC's proposal, released on July 20, reiterates its current accounting practice for bioenergy, with emissions related to biomass use reported and accounted for under LULUCF, i.e. biomass use in the energy sector is zero rated, to avoid double-counting. “This proposal reinforces the need for the U.S. to appropriately recognize the benefits of biomass energy. The uncertainty caused by EPA is putting the U.S. out of step with the rest of the world, and puts our American workers and job creators at a competitive disadvantage.