AF&PA's Sustainable Forestry Initiative - A Bold New Program that Works for the U. S., 1996 Pulping Conference Proceedings

Rick Cantrell

American Forest & Paper Association

The close of 1994 marked the end of one era and the start of another for members of the American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA). This new beginning was ushered in by AF&PA, when its members established a major industry goal: to enhance the environment by visibly changing the practice of forestry on industrial forestland, especially as it pertains to water quality, wildlife and biodiversity. Equally important, AF&PA members are engaging loggers and private woodland owners in an ongoing dialogue to encourage reforestation, to use environmental Best Management Practices, and to improve the appearance of harvesting operations, particularly in highly visible areas. Today -- two years later -- AF&PA members are on their way toward meeting the goal of sustainable forestry. Through the collection and analysis of reports from individual companies, AF&PA compiled data on environmental performance across the industry. This information -- available for the first time in 1996 -- is being used to identify trends in the practice of sustainable forestry. The data cover a variety of topics ranging from harvesting practices to wildlife habitat diversity on more than 52 million acres members own or control. An independent panel of experts, who reviewed these data and the first annual sustainable forestry progress report, noted that although it was too early to tell how far the changes in commercial forestry practices will go, or how fast they will occur, that they do see positive signs in many of the companies they visit and in the first annual progress report.