The launch of the new Sustainable Forestry Initiative® (SFI) 2015-2019 Standards and Rules marks an important advancement to support better decision making all along the supply chain and to promote sustainable forest management.

Stehendes Holz

Sustainable Forestry Initiative launches new standards and rules for 2015-19

Jan 08, 2015. /Lesprom Network/. The launch of the new Sustainable Forestry Initiative® (SFI) 2015-2019 Standards and Rules marks an important advancement to support better decision making all along the supply chain and to promote sustainable forest management, as SFI said in the press release received by Lesprom Network. 

“The future of our forests depends on credible, transparent and auditable standards to enable sustainable resource use for today and generations to come. Our work starts with the SFI standards, but SFI is so much more — it’s a community that stands together for the health and future of forests,” said Kathy Abusow, President and CEO of SFI Inc. “SFI plays a central role in strengthening the vital link between healthy forests, responsible purchasing and sustainable communities.”

A major change to the structure of the SFI 2015-2019 Standards and Rules is the establishment of three stand-alone standards:

- The SFI 2015-2019 Forest Management Standard promotes sustainable forestry practices based on 13 Principles, 15 Objectives, 37 Performance Measures and 101 Indicators. These requirements include measures to protect water quality, biodiversity, wildlife habitat, species at risk and forests with exceptional conservation value.

- The SFI 2015-2019 Fiber Sourcing Standard promotes responsible forestry practices based on 14 Principles, 13 Objectives, 21 Performance Measures and 55 Indicators that address the 90 percent of the world’s forests that are not certified. These fiber sourcing requirements include measures to broaden the conservation of biodiversity, use forestry best management practices to protect water quality, provide outreach to landowners and utilize the services of forest management and harvesting professionals. Because it directs how SFI Program Participants procure fiber from non-certified land, this standard encourages the use of responsible forestry practices.

- The SFI 2015-2019 Chain of Custody Standard tracks the percentage of fiber from certified forests, certified sourcing and recycled content through production and manufacturing to the end product. Organizations can use physical separation, average percentage or volume credit methods to track and communicate their chain of custody claims. The SFI Chain of Custody standard is applied globally.

“The revised SFI standards will continue to serve as a proof point for responsible forestry in North America,” said Lawrence Selzer, Chair of the SFI Board of Directors and President and CEO of The Conservation Fund. “These standards are shaped by the people and communities who put them into practice every day.”

SFI Inc. is an independent, nonprofit organization that is solely responsible for maintaining, overseeing and improving the internationally-recognized Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) program.