We work closely with our suppliers to ensure that the pulp we source meets our values, commitments, and standards. FSC Canada's forest management standard addresses challenges specific to Canadian forests and includes criteria for managing woodland caribou and its habitat, including additional indicators relevant to all species that may be at risk. The updates also include clarification around "free, prior and informed consent" as defined in the United Nations Declaration of Indigenous Peoples. With the increased rigor in the FSC Canada National Forest Management Standard through our demand and increase in FSC-certified sourcing, we are working to protect these important values in Canada and elsewhere. P&G is partnering with our suppliers to become certified to FSC Canada's new Forest Management Standard.
Caribou protection planning is part of the authority of each province. P&G has and will continue to work to influence each province to develop stronger caribou protection plans. To date, P&G has:
P&G was a founding member of the Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement (CBFA) signed in 2010, a historic agreement covering more than 72 million hectares of public forests. Changing economic realities and heightened public and marketplace concern over environmental issues had created opportunities for Canada's forest industry and environmental organizations. From these challenges came a unique collaboration between 21 major Canadian forest products companies and nine leading environmental organizations. The agreement committed signatories to achieving strategic goals that addressed environmental and economic sustainability in the Boreal forest. Yet, this coalition was not enough. All parties acknowledged that changes are needed to create a more effective and responsive implementation model that will engage proactively with local communities, provincial governments, First Nations, and other non-signatory environmental groups who share our commitment. So while the CBFA is not in existence today, the CBFA continues to be a model for a future cooperative conservation agreement.
Funded pilot study to ensure new FSC Canada standard with stronger caribou protections was feasible for pulp suppliers
Three-year project with FSC Canada to drive adoption of new FSC Canada Forest Management standard
Funded FSC Canada Caribou Studies to build the science to protect caribou better
P&G requires that 100% of the wood pulp we source is certified by a globally recognized 3rd party certification system (
Forest Stewardship Council (FSC),
Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), and
Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC)) which include criteria related to protecting both environmental and social values of forests. P&G gives preference to the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification scheme and accepts fiber from some national standards endorsed by the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) schemes of which SFI is included. These certification systems include criteria related to many critical areas:
Endangered Species
All animals and plants play vital roles in the balance of their local ecosystems. If any were to go extinct, ecosystems could have significant negative impacts. It's important to protect those species that are threated or endangered. P&G's requirements for all pulp fiber to be third party certified helps protect and restore threatened and endangered species. FSC's standard directly states that companies "shall protect rare species and threaten species and their habitats" to maintain certification (
C6.4). Canada's FSC standard goes even further to specifically develop requirements for caribou (
C6.4.5a). SFI’s standard says companies “shall protect threatened and endangered species, critically imperiled and imperiled species, and natural communities, and old-growth forests” (
PM4.2). PEFC’s standard says companies should take actions for endangered species "protection and, where relevant, to increase their population." (
C8.4.3)
Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC)
Respecting the traditional rights of communities that reside and rely on forests is very important especially for Indigenous Groups. P&G uses certification standards as important tools to evaluate suppliers’ compliance with our policy commitment that Indigenous Peoples rights are respected through the completion of the Free, Prior, and Informed Consent process. All national FSC standards are required to "recognize and uphold the rights, custom and culture of Indigenous Peoples as defined in the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples" (
C3.4). This requires companies to "identify and uphold Indigenous Peoples legal and customary rights of ownership." SFI says companies “shall develop and implement a written policy acknowledging a commitment to recognize and respect the rights of Indigenous Peoples”(
PM 8.1). PEFC says that national certification standards it endorses should use a framework to ensure Indigenous rights are respected suggesting the use of the U.N. Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and stating that rights which shall not be infringed upon without the free, prior, and informed consent of the holders of the rights, including the provision of compensation where applicable (
C6.3.2.2).
High Conservation Values (HCV)
High conservation values are any characteristics that make an area unique or special. They could be sites of archeological, cultural, and environmental significance. Examples are habitats to protect the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker, cemeteries, a watershed that is the source for water for entire communities, or traditional hunting grounds of Indigenous Peoples. P&G's belief in third-party certification standard helps us evaluate our suppliers’ compliance with our policy commitment to ensure HCVs are properly identified and protected. PEFC's standard does not use the HCV definitions, but says certified companies shall "identify, protect, conserve or set aside ecologically important forest areas" (
I8.4.2) and "maintain or enhance the economic, ecological, cultural and social values of forest resources" (
I8.1.1). SFI says certificate holders “shall manage to protect ecologically important sites in a manner that takes into account their unique qualities” (
PM 4.3). FSC's global standard requires certified companies to "maintain or enhance High Conservation Values" (
Principle 9).
Replanting Requirements
The forestry certification systems require prompt action taken to regenerate forest cover to pre-harvest conditions, ensuring the same quality and quantity of the forest resources. FSC directly address regeneration and planting by requiring companies "by natural or artificial regeneration methods, regenerate vegetation cover in a timely fashion to pre-harvesting or more natural conditions"
(C10.1). Further, FSC certified companies "shall use species for regeneration that are ecologically well adapted to the site and management objectives" (
C10.2). The PEFC standard "requires that successful regeneration shall be ensured through natural regeneration or planting that is adequate to ensure the quantity and quality of the forest resources" (
C8.4.4). The SFI standard requires companies to “promptly reforest after final harvest”
(PM2.1).
Forest Conversion
Altering forests to non-forest uses, such as housing developments or agricultural fields, should be avoided. The loss of habitat for wildlife is devastating, and the new land type cannot sequester as much carbon as a forest. These conversions also increase forest fragmentation that further breaks up larger forests that some wildlife depend on for their survival. Certification systems used by P&G suppliers heavily regulate forest conversion. FSC does not permit conversion except in extremely limited circumstances
(C6.9). The conversion must produce clear and substantial long-term conservation benefits, not take place in HCV areas, and be less than 0.5% of the forest. Lands converted to non-forest land use are not eligible for SFI certification at all
(PM1.3). There are exceptions for wildlife food plots or forest infrastructures such as forest roads, trails, and log processing areas. Conversion to housing developments, office or industrial parks, commercial crop fields, or pastures is not permitted under any certification P&G uses.
Biodiversity
Preserving the biodiversity of forests is vital for healthy ecosystems. Forest management activities must maintain or enhance biodiversity. All certification systems consider biodiversity within their standards. The Sustainable Forestry Initiative includes biodiversity in their first indicator saying, “Forest management planning at a level appropriate to the size and scale of the operation, including biodiversity at landscape scales”
(PM 1.1.1.d). The Programme for the Endorsement of Certification address biodiversity by “requiring that management planning shall aim to maintain, conserve or enhance biodiversity on landscape, ecosystem, species and genetic levels”
(C 8.4.1). Areas of significant concentration of biodiversity are included in FSC’s definition of High Conservation Value areas and need to be conserved or protected
(Page 89).
Degradation
The FSC International Generic Indicators give instructions to standards developers in countries around the world that certificate holders should “improve degraded areas, once harvested, to more natural conditions”
(C10.1). The Canadian FSC standard says to prevent degradation to waterways and “best efforts are made to maintain habitat features and increase the quality and quantity of habitat features…that have suffered long-term degradation due to forest management activities”
(C6.7.3 & 6.6.4). The PEFC standard states that “management plans specify ways and means to minimize the risk of degradation and damage to forest ecosystems”
(C6.2.5). Further, “degraded forest ecosystems shall be rehabilitated wherever and as far as economically feasible, by making best use of natural structures and process and using preventive biological measures”
(C8.2.1). The SFI system has several objectives and performance measures that cover forest health and biodiversity that support degradation prevention and remediation. For example, SFI standard says “Certified Organizations shall manage to protect forests from damage agents, such as environmental or economically undesirable levels or wildfire, pests, diseases, and invasive species, to maintain and improve long-term forest health, productivity, and economic viability”
(PM2.4). SFI certified companies are also to “conserve biological diversity at the stand and landscape level across a diversity of forest and vegetation cover types and successional stages including the conservation of forest plants and animals, aquatic species, threatened and endangered species, Forests with Exceptional Conservation Value, old-growth forests, and ecologically important sites”
(O4). Other topics detailed above in this section could also support in limiting degradation such as replanting, biodiversity, and endangered species.