Greenpeace Excluded from Forest Industry TalksGreenpeace Press Release
November 21, 2000
Vancouver/Amsterdam - Greenpeace today acknowledged that it has reached an impasse with four Canadian forestry companies over a fundamental issue of principle. As a result, the forest industry companies are refusing to participate in any further talks about the future of logging practices in the ancient temperate rainforests of British Columbia if Greenpeace is at the table.
Although Greenpeace has been involved in current “peace in the woods” discussions for nearly a year, its participation has become increasingly difficult due to the reluctance of industry representatives to address a fundamental issue: two of the companies remaining at the table are using their dialogue with environmentalists to “launder” unsustainably harvested wood products from International Forest Products(Interfor).
“The only way Interfor can be brought to its senses is if all Interfor customers globally renounce this renegade company’s practices and products,” said Catherine Stewart, Greenpeace forest campaigner. “The B.C. pulp industry, including some of the companies involved in these talks, are major buyers of Interfor wood for their pulp mills. We believe their customers have a right to know this. Because of this we have been excluded from further talks.”
Greenpeace International forests campaigner Christoph Thies added: “We are as committed as ever to working with industry, First Nations, coastal communities and government to implement solutions which will protect forest biodiversity and help develop a diverse and sustainable economy for all British Columbians. However, we believe these negotiations are too important to be misused by some forest interests seeking to sweep the destructive business relations of Interfor under the carpet.”
Discussions began a year ago when the forest industry was forced to acknowledge the success of Greenpeace’s international markets campaign which resulted in numerous contract cancellations for companies involved in the industrial clearcutting of these ancient forests. Major businesses, including Ikea and Home Depot, paper makers and publishers, adopted policies to phase out purchases of wood from unsustainably logged forests.
Of the six companies (1) originally involved, the first four agreed to place more than 100 pristine valleys in Canada’s Great Bear Rainforest into a logging moratorium until key conservation areas could be identified and ecosystem-based management concepts developed for the remainder. Although they brought no holdings in this contentious area to the table, Canfor and Norske-Skog joined the initiative and committed themselves to ecosystem-based planning. In return for this logging standstill, Greenpeace agreed not to target these companies in its global campaign to save the world’s last remaining ancient forests.
While Greenpeace and two other environmental groups negotiated with the CFCI in good faith, West Fraser was secretly arranging the sale of some of its Great Bear Rainforest holdings. Within a month of West Fraser’s departure from the talks, Interfor had chosen clearcuts and conflicts over solutions and also walked away. At this point, more than half the forest valleys the talks were meant to protect were once again vulnerable to industrial clearcutting.
Despite Greenpeace’s efforts to resolve this issue, the two pulp manufacturers have refused to take any meaningful steps towards eliminating Interfor fibre from their mills or exerting pressure on Interfor to bring their valleys back into the process. Although Greenpeace remains committed to working towards long-term, ecologically sustainable forestry practices in British Columbia and has voiced its desire to remain part of the environmental/industry initiative, the group has been informed by industry representatives that they will no longer include Greenpeace in any discussions.
“The industry claims that by contacting B.C. pulp customers and appealing to them to exert pressure on Interfor to re-engage in the solutions process, Greenpeace violated the standstill agreement,” said Stewart. “We believe that turning a blind eye to Interfor’s assault on the biologically unique ecosystem of the Great Bear Rainforest is the real violation which must be addressed.”
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
Miranda Holmes, Greenpeace Canada, Tel.: +1 604 253 7701 ext. 20 or +1 604 551 3206
Gina Sanchez, Greenpeace International Tel.: +31 20 5249 547
Notes to Editors: 1 - The six companies, which adopted the name Coastal Forest Conservation Iniciative were: Weyerhaeuser, Western Forest Products (WFP), International Forest Products (Interfor), West Fraser, Canadian Forest Products (Canfor) and Norske-Skog (formerly Fletcher-Challenge Canada)