By Sherri Taylor
News Editor

In the early 1990s, the major North American timber industry leaders saw the need to build up their public image while at the same time implementing timber management procedures that would protect pure water, endangered species, and the forests themselves.

"One reason these initiatives came about in the first place was the public's negative opinion of the forestry industry," explained Clyde Todd, executive director of the Louisiana Logging Council. The public needed to know the good job most loggers were already doing and have assurance they would do even better in the future.

Among the 90 who gathered to discuss these issues was Ed Meyers, resource products manager at Smurfit-Stone Paper mill in Hodge, Louisiana. The ones who went to Washington, D.C. included foresters, procurement people, land management specialists, consultants and land owners as well as environmentalists.

"We asked ourselves 'How would we practice forestry our own way?'", said Meyers. What resulted were the Sustainable Forest Initiatives that now govern the forestry industry nationwide. Sustainable Forestry can be said to "meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs by practicing a land stewardship ethic which integrates the reforestation, managing, growing and harvesting of trees for useful products with the conservation of soil, air and water quality, wildlife and fish habitat, and aesthetics."

The American Forest and Paper Association (AF&PA) fostered this national set of guidelines that are now known as the Sustainable Forest Initiatives or SFI. Every state also builds its own set of initiatives to fit in with the national guidelines and suit the environment of their state. These can at times be more stringent than the national rules. Further, most companies also implement their own policy, including and even going beyond what is required by SFI.

"Our company policy has more stringent requirements than SFI," said Meyers. For one thing, Smurfit-Stone is vigilant over oil spills. Not large reportable spills, but small, almost unnoticed spills at any site. In that way the company polices itself, over and above the SFI Implementation Committee rules.

To go a step further, the International Standards Organization sets global regulations with which many large corporation comply.

"Our company is both SFI certified and ISO," said Meyers of Smurfit-Stone Corporation.

On the ground level, that means when a logging contractor or mill buys a tract of timber, there are rules that must be followed. Contact with the land owner includes giving them a packet of information, helping them to assure they are treated fairly and that their timber is harvested correctly.

"Before we ever harvest," said one logging contractor in Winn Parish," a forester from our company goes out, surveys the land, decides on a harvesting plan and then discusses it with me."

The loggers are told where they are allowed to build a road into the plot of timber in order to minimize stream crossings while maximizing aesthetics. They are told where to cross streams when necessary, the use of material they excavate to build non-permanent roads, and methods for closing up the property when harvest is completed. Streamside zones must be left, special areas must be identified, endangered species cared for and numerous other requirements for sustainable forestry to work.

In Louisiana, the Louisiana Forestry Association instituted the Master Logger Program. Other states have similar projects where loggers are taught to protect the soil, water and forest quality for recreation, long-term forest productivity, wildlife habitat, protect special sites and efficient use of forest resources.

"Our goal was that in 10 years the initiatives would allow the public to see with their own eyes that we had made a difference in forestry practices," explained Meyers.

One small example is the lack of trash now found at abandoned harvesting sites. Where oil cans and other paraphernalia were often left behind, most loggers now strive to leave the area clean. Woods roads are not left to become highways into sensitive areas, but are seeded and closed to prevent driving through. Soon no sign of the loggers road can be found.

But the forest industry was not satisfied with simply policing themselves, going back and certifying that loggers were operating under the guidelines. Today, there are third party auditors who go out into the forests, check sites without notice and make reports to all the major companies. This certification process is carried out by such giant groups in the country as Price Waterhouse Cooper, who have set up a separate department to watchdog the forest industry, who were carefully inspecting their own.

Foresters believe that healthy forests must be managed for recreation, clean air, clean water, wildlife, and useful forest products.

"The SFI program is good for forestry," said one logger who did complain about some of the meetings he has to sit through. He and others in the business are pleased to follow guidelines that let the public, landowners and environmentalist know they are not harming the land anymore than a rice harvester or cotton farmer does with their crops. The acceptability of SFI continues to grow.

While only 10% of forest industries subscribed to environmentally sound forest practices in the 1990s, today the figure is 90%.

"Our goal is to have 90% of suppliers certified through the Master Logger program," said Meyers.

According to AF&PA figures, there are 136 million acres enrolled with 103 million acres already third party certified.

There are 34 SFI Implementation Committees who work in 37 states and two Canadian Provinces to be certain the principles are adhered to by all. In Louisiana, the SFI Implementation Committee is overseen by the Louisiana Forestry Association. For the next two years, Ed Meyers will chair that committee.

In the year 2001, 10,402 loggers and foresters received training. In all, there have been 67,403 since 1995. That means that in today's market, 94% of the raw materials leaving the forest has been sustainably harvested by trained loggers.

"The goal is to raise our performance to higher standards," said Meyers. He admits to being proud of the fact he there are the birth of SFI and he supports it every step it takes.

"Most loggers and companies all do a better job because we want to do a better job," Meyers said. "We are stewards of the land."

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