{"id":2602,"date":"2016-04-14T13:09:52","date_gmt":"2016-04-14T17:09:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.goodforforests.com\/?p=2602"},"modified":"2023-03-23T13:53:19","modified_gmt":"2023-03-23T17:53:19","slug":"leed-congress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forests.org\/fr\/leed-congress\/","title":{"rendered":"LEED Recognition for SFI and ATFS Is Good News for Forests and the Communities that Rely on Them"},"content":{"rendered":"

Guest bloggers:
\nRepublican Representative Gregg Harper of Mississippi and Democratic Representative Kurt Schrader of Oregon<\/p>\n

When it comes to the health of our nation\u2019s forests and the communities that depend on them, we occupy common ground. Another thing we share is our respect for the U.S. Green Building Council\u2019s decision to create a pathway for more U.S. forests to earn Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) credits. LEED credits are key to tapping into the emerging green building market.<\/p>\n

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Republican Representative Gregg Harper of Mississippi<\/p><\/div>\n

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Democratic Representative Kurt Schrader of Oregon<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

The Council\u2019s recent decision to recognize products certified to the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) and the American Tree Farm System (ATFS) is something that we and many others have championed for years. It\u2019s gratifying to see the work of so many people who care about forests and the communities that rely on them being recognized by this decision.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s important to have a level playing field when it comes to recognizing forest certification standards. The combined acres certified to SFI and ATFS in our states \u2014 3.4 million acres in Mississippi and 4.6 million acres in Oregon \u2014 make important contributions to responsible forest management. Forests certified to these standards support conservation values such as water quality and conserving habitat. Offering LEED credits to forests certified to these standards will help encourage more responsible forestry and stronger forest products markets.<\/p>\n

Our forests play a key role in the sustainability of rural communities across America. By creating more market opportunities for responsibly managed forests, we are also creating incentives to keep forests as forests for future generations in these communities.<\/p>\n

Responsible forestry relies on good stewardship of a renewable resource. And in our two states, responsible forestry plays a key role in the local economies that drive prosperity.<\/p>\n

According to Mississippi State University\u2019s Department of Forestry, forestry in Mississippi generates more than $10\u00a0billion in economic activity and employs more than 63,000 people. The same story of forestry\u2019s importance to state economies plays out in Oregon. The Oregon Department of Forestry says sustainably producing timber adds about $12\u00a0billion annually to Oregon\u2019s economy and supports more than 58,000 jobs\u200b.<\/p>\n

We both look forward to this sustainable, renewable economic resource growing in importance for our states. The U.S. Green Building Council\u2019s recognition of SFI and the ATFS under LEED will help make this growth happen.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

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