Give your feedback on the new PEFC RED III standards

People hold unique connections to the forest, whether they be spiritual, social, physical, or economic. As Mercer knows, it is important to acknowledge these connections amongst our many stakeholders and to do all that we can to ensure the forest is managed sustainably so that everyone can remain connected to their forest in their own way. Operating in the Northern Boreal Forest region of Alberta, Mercer Peace River (MPR) holds two 20-year renewable government Forest Management Agreements (FMAs), along with three other deciduous (hardwood) timber allocations, totalling approximately 2.7 million hectares of Alberta forest. These agreements come with many responsibilities; one primary responsibility is to manage the forest sustainably and ethically. As part of our forest management process, we consult and engage with Indigenous communities and with many government, commercial, and public forest stakeholders to ensure that our plans are responsive, diversified and inclusive.

PEFC notes the concerns voiced by Greenpeace in a recent report, namely that ‘[c]ertification on its own has not helped companies meet their 2020 commitments to exclude deforestation from their supply chains’ and cautions that certification was never designed – and never claimed – to do so on its own. “Forest certification is an important part of the toolbox needed to stop deforestation, protect biodiversity, safeguard livelihoods, and provide society with wood as a sustainable, renewable raw material,” said Ben Gunneberg, CEO of PEFC International. “Forest certification is not designed to solve issues like deforestation by itself. This is because many of the factors causing deforestation are outside forestry, such as the demand for land for agricultural production. We need to employ multiple tools, ensure the support of all stakeholders, and work collaboratively to achieve our common objective: safeguarding our forests,” added Mr Gunneberg.

UPM Biofuels is one of six finalists for the Industry Leadership category in Bioenergy at the 2017 Platts Global Energy Awards - often described as the Oscars of the energy industry. UPM Biofuels is nominated for its wood-based low emission advanced UPM BioVerno biofuels, and its one-of-a-kind commercial scale biorefinery in Lappeenranta, Finland. The Platts Global Energy Awards honour organisations and individuals who are dedicated to achieving excellence in the energy industry, recognising top performers - industry leaders and innovators in the energy industry. The Bioenergy Industry Leader Award recognises a recent innovation in bioenergy that is market competitive, ecologically sound and minimises undesirable environmental impacts. The nominees must be producing or enhancing the application of bioenergy solutions. The judging criteria include challenges, financial results, innovation, leadership and operational excellence. Click Read More below for more of the story.