Al-Pac Forests Now World's Largest FSC-Certified Area

Alberta-Pacific Forest Industries Inc. (Al-Pac) in Alberta, Canada, a pulp manufacturer owned 70 percent by Mitsubishi Corp. and 30 percent by Oji Paper Co., has obtained a forest management certification approved by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), it was announced on September 20, 2005. Its 5.5 million hectares here are the largest single FSC-certified forest in the world.

The FSC is a nonprofit organization established by environmental groups, forest products makers, indigenous groups and forest-industry certification bodies. It is considered to be one of the most credible forest certification systems in the world.

Al-Pac has a 20-year contract with the Alberta Provincial Government for the effective use of forest resources in northern Alberta. The company was able to acquire the certification thanks to support from stakeholders who collaborate with it for proper forest management, and with which it has good relations, including local communities, first-nations groups, and other industries; governmental bodies of Canada and Alberta; and environmental organizations, including the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Canada.

With Al-Pac's certification, the first in Canada's northwestern forests, Canada now has 14.3 million hectares of FSC-certified forests, accounting for 22.8% of the global total.

http://www.alpac.ca/content/files/Al-Pac%20FSC%20Certification%20news%20release.doc

Posted: 2006/01/12 09:54:14 AM
Japanese version