Partnerships for Protecting and Conserving Biodiversity
We work closely with a variety of stakeholders on a number of initiatives to support and enhance biodiversity. Recent partnerships include:
Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement
On May 18, 2010, 21 member companies of the Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC), including Resolute Forest Products, jointly announced with key environmental organizations (ENGOs) the signing of the Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement (CBFA). The CBFA is a landmark agreement that ushers in a new era of conservation and forest management for Canada’s boreal forest. The key goals for the accord include:
- World-leading “on-the-ground” sustainable forest management practices based on the principles of ecosystem-based management, active adaptive management and third-party verification;
- The completion of a network of protected areas that, taken as a whole, represents the diversity of ecosystems within the boreal region and serves to provide ecological benchmarks;
- The recovery of species at risk within the boreal forest, including species such as the woodland caribou;
- Reducing greenhouse gas emissions along the full life cycle, from forest to end of product life;
- Improved prosperity of the Canadian forest sector and the communities that depend on it; and
- Recognition by the marketplace (customers, investors, consumers) of the CBFA and its implementation in ways that demonstrably benefit FPAC members and their products from the boreal.
The agreement covers 72 million hectares (178 million acres) of public forests licensed to FPAC member companies. Under the agreement, FPAC members, who manage two-thirds of all certified forestland in Canada, commit to the highest environmental standards of forest management within an area twice the size of Germany, and conservation groups commit to global recognition and support for FPAC member efforts.
Overview of Progress
Since the launch of the agreement, a substantial organizational structure has been put in place, including planning and reporting processes. This includes a secretariat to oversee project management and logistics, and a steering committee comprised of equal numbers of ENGO and industry representatives.
In September 2011, noted environmentalist Monte Hummel was named Chairman and Andrew Bevan became the first full-time Executive Director of the CBFA secretariat. Resolute participates in several CBFA mechanisms, including the steering committee, six out of seven of the national working groups, and the Ontario and Québec regional working groups.
For more information on the Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement, visit www.canadianborealforestagreement.com.
Dogwood Alliance
In June 2005, the Company signed a historic memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Dogwood Alliance and the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) to enhance the protection of forests on Tennessee’s Cumberland Plateau as well as in other parts of the southern United States. Highlights of the MOU include: commitments to promote the management of natural forests; the study of certain lands of exceptional ecological, geological or historical significance on the Cumberland Plateau; and commitments to identify and promote recycling opportunities. All parties engage in regular dialogue on MOU commitments and implementation, and continue to look for new opportunities for further collaboration.
Woodland Caribou Nutrition Research
In 2009, Resolute made a three-year commitment of C$25,000 per year to fund a new research project undertaken in part by the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement (NCASI) to study habitat influences on woodland caribou populations. This unique project covers new ground by quantifying for the first time the relationship between caribou habitat, the nutrition they receive, and how well caribou reproduce and survive.
To learn more about the NCASI caribou research project, visit www.ncasi.org.