The following article has been submitted by Klaus Schenck of Salva la Selva.
Author: FSC-Watch
‘FSC Friday’ #1: ‘Can we trust the FSC?’, asks The Ecologist Magazine
This is the first of a series of articles which will be posted in the run-up to ‘FSC Friday’ (September 25th), with which FSC-Watch aims to highlight some of the on-going problems with FSC certifications.
FSC Ireland – the latest round in the decade-long fiasco
The following has been submitted by the Irish Environmental and Social Stakeholders.
Scandales dans la famille Forest Stewardship Council
(This posting is reproduced from a article in the Courrier de la Planète.)
FSC’s ‘false guarantees’ over Swedish wood prompts formation of new forest conservation group
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.
FSC’s credibility in Sweden takes another pounding with new Greenpeace report
Greenpeace has released a new report detailing major problems and non-compliances in FSC certifications in Sweden.
FSC, Hancock and Smartwood Selling Out the Gippsland Environment
Last month, FSC-Watch received the following post about SmartWood’s certification of Hancock Victorian Plantations. Early in February, a large area of Hancock’s plantations burned down: part of the tragic fires which saw the loss of more than 200 lives and 1,800 homes. More information about the fires is available here.
WWF pulls the plug on Barama, former FSC star performer
WWF has finalised its forced retreat from supporting one of South America’s most notorious logging companies, and now says it believes that the Guyana-based Barama would not be able to regain the FSC certificate that was ‘suspended’ in 2007.
Congolaise Industrielle des Bois (CIB): myth of biodiversity protection evaporates as new evidence shows impacts on elephants
A new research paper (see abstract below) on the behavioural patterns of forest elephants has dealt a major blow to the myth of ‘sustainable logging’ in the rainforests of the Congo Basin. One of the areas specifically referred to in the paper as being negatively impacted is covered by the concessions of Congolaise Industrielle des Bois (CIB) that is currently being ‘pre-assessed’ for FSC certification by Rainforest Alliance SmartWood.
FSC and the Lacey Act: the $500,000 question
In May 2008, the US government enacted a revision to the Lacey Act, a hundred year-old piece of legislation that renders it illegal to trade in goods in the US which are from illegal sources, which now makes the Act applicable to the timber trade. Whilst timber traders are no doubt hoping that use of FSC certified wood is going to keep them out of prison, they may be in for a nasty shock.
FSC-Watch 