FSC-Watch

Scandales dans la famille Forest Stewardship CouncilTags: Worldwide, Certifier conflict of interest, Plantations, Mixed sources labelling, All certifiers

(This posting is reproduced from a article in the Courrier de la Planète.)

Ce texte est extrait d'une interview donnée par Simon Counsell au site Mongabay.com le 17 avril 2008. Cette interview faisait suite à celle de Nina Haase, responsable de la communication du Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), publiée sur le même site dix jours plus tôt et réalisée en réponse aux nombreuses critiques formulées à l'encontre du système de certification FSC...[Continue]

FSC is greenwashing Brazil's monoculture tree plantations: Part 2Tags: Brazil, Plantations, Rainforest Alliance SmartWood

Last week, journalist Fred Pearce investigated Ryman's claims of "carbon neutral" office paper in his "Greenwash" column in The Guardian. It turns out that the raw material for Ryman's paper comes from Suzano's monoculture eucalyptus plantations in Brazil. Suzano's FSC-Certified monoculture eucalyptus plantations, that is.

Of course, as FSC's Alison Kriscenski pointed out to Pearce, "FSC certification is not a guarantee that a forest is carbon neutral, and people should not use it to claim that." But that apparently doesn't stop Suzano from making precisely that claim...[Continue]

FSC is greenwashing Brazil's monoculture tree plantations: Part 1Tags: Brazil, Plantations

World Rainforest Movement currently has a great image of FSC's greenwashing of industrial tree plantations on the front page of its website (click on the image below to go to WRM's website):

FSC greenwashing monoculture tree plantations Evidence provided by the Brazilian Pulp and Paper Industry itself

For over a decade, the World Rainforest Movement has been denouncing that -by certifying large scale tree plantations- the FSC is greenwashing the destructive activities of plantation companies in Southern countries...[Continue]

Local organisations criticise FSC certification of eucalyptus monocultures in BrazilTags: Brazil, Plantations

This article from this month's World Rainforest Movement bulletin illustrates that the problems with FSC-certification of industrial tree plantations are far from resolved.

The most common response to criticisms of FSC is that a review is currently under way, with a promise that the critique will be taken into account. This is the case with FSC certification of industrial tree plantations. In fact, FSC's review of its plantations policy started in 2004 (after a motion was passed at FSC's 2002 General Assembly)...[Continue]

FSC's 'false guarantees' over Swedish wood prompts formation of new forest conservation groupTags: Sweden

FSC-Watch has received this announcement of the establishment of a new organisation which aims to fight the destruction of Sweden's forests, and to challenge the greenwashing of this destruction by the FSC.

Swedish old-growth forest destruction - international wood and paper customers deceived

New organization confronts old-growth forest destruction

Sweden, which will take over the EU Presidency in July 2009, has a considerable proportion of Europe's remaining old-growth forests...[Continue]

FSC's Brazil disgrace continues as landless re-occupy certified illegal plantation landsTags: Brazil, Plantations, Certifier conflict of interest, SGS Qualifor

We have received the following from 'Alert against the Green Desert Network' in Brazil, reporting on the Landless Rural Workers' Movement (MST) continuing occupation of part of the illegal (but FSC certified) plantations owened by Veracel. As we previously reported, the Veracel certification has been highly controversial; despite FSC itself finding that the certificate showed "a number of nonconformities with FSC accreditation requirements", the certificate still remains in place and SGS Qualifor, which was responsible for issuing it, remains accredited by FSC...[Continue]

More media coverage of the Massachusetts Chainsaw MassacreTags: USA, Accreditation controls, SCS

Last month, FSC-Watch posted information about the FSC-certified destructive logging taking place in Massachusetts. Massachusetts Forest Watch has documented the destruction in detail. The story has received more media coverage, listed below, with links.

Taxpayers footing bill to destroy state forests

Capital 9 News, 3 April 2009

It's a massive space of open land in Savoy Massachusetts...[Continue]

Key German NGO quits FSC in disgust at plantation certificationsTags: Plantations

Another long-standing European NGO member of FSC has announced its intention to withdraw its membership of the organisation in protest at what it sees as FSC's failure to prevent the certification of non-compliant companies. The Hamburg-based Robin Wood has been a member of FSC for 12 years. The group says in a statement issued on March 16th that it will continue working with the German national FSC group, but will end cooperation with FSC international. As with a growing number of NGOs, Robin Wood acknowledges that FSC is 'the most credible' forest certification system - but seemingly no longer credible enough to be associated with...[Continue]

Why does FSC allow the Massachusetts Chainsaw Massacre to remain certified?Tags: USA, Accreditation controls, SCS

FSC is coming in for some serious criticism in Massachusetts. Earlier this month, Massachusetts Forest Watch produced a 50-page report detailing the damage that logging is doing to State forests.

Subsequently, the Boston Channel's Team 5 Investigates produced a video explaining how the state Department of Conservation and Recreation, which is supposed to protect forests, is actually cutting them down. Click on the image below to watch the video:

The transcript is available here...[Continue]

FSC's credibility in Sweden takes another pounding with new Greenpeace reportTags: Sweden, Certifier conflict of interest, High Conservation Value Forests, Greenpeace

Greenpeace has released a new report detailing major problems and non-compliances in FSC certifications in Sweden.

Stockholm, Thursday 5 March 2009 - Swedish timber with the certification label FSC might come from high conservation value forests that should have been left protected, a new Greenpeace report reveals.

Forest Stewardship Council, FSC, is an international organization certifying forestry and wood products, such as paper and furniture. The FSC label should guarantee that the forest companies' timber and other products derive from forestry with high environmental standards...[Continue]