WASHINGTON, D.C. – With the support of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative ® (SFI®) Forest PartnersSM Program, 103,000 acres of land owned by the South Carolina Forestry Commission and Clemson University were recently certified to the SFI and American Tree Farm System® standards. The five South Carolina state forests underwent a simultaneous independent audit to certify to both the ATFS and SFI standards and Clemson University Forests, which have been ATFS certified since 1987, became SFI certified.
Founding SFI Forest Partners National Geographic Society, Time Inc., Macmillan Publishers and Pearson are promoting innovative approaches to make certification more accessible for medium-‐sized forest landowners and for small-‐ and medium-‐sized mills. The SFI Forest Partners Program has identified nearly half a million acres of additional lands in Florida, Georgia and Virginia for program participation, with many landowners beginning third-‐ party certification audits by the end of 2013.
“Sustainable management of our natural resources contributes to the long-‐term success of South Carolina’s forestry industry which significantly impacts employment and manufacturing activity,” Governor Nikki Haley said. “This successful public-‐private enterprise reinforces our state’s commitment to landowners and timber managers by investing in responsible forest management.”
“Thirty percent of U.S. acres certified to the SFI Standard are publicly owned, demonstrating the value of SFI certification to public working forests, while sending a leadership signal to private landowners as well,” said SFI President and CEO Kathy Abusow. “We congratulate South Carolina for having the first certificate issued under the SFI Forest Partners Program and for representing significant progress in meeting our goal of certifying five million acres by the end of 2014.”
“The Clemson Experimental Forest is dedicated to the teaching, research and demonstration of best practices in forest resource management to benefit society and the environment,” said Clemson University President James F. Barker. “We are proud that Clemson’s forest has met SFI’s science-‐based standard for sustainability. Our institutional commitment to sustainability is central to our land-‐grant mission, and SFI certification is another step toward becoming a carbon neutral campus by 2030.”
“The ATFS standard is a great tool to encourage family landowners to practice active, responsible forestry, and SFI certification enables our State Forests to contribute certified wood content to the supply chain of many SFI Program Participants,” said Gene Kodama, South Carolina State Forester. “Through this initiative, we will better protect and develop our state’s forest resource.”
“Along with improving services to Tree Farmers, we led an effort to broaden the base of certified lands to reach beyond the small private landowner. The partnership between SFI, the South Carolina Forestry Commission and the South Carolina Tree Farm Committee to dual certify state forest lands and Clemson to the SFI and the Tree Farm standards does just that” said Ken Leach, chairman of the South Carolina Tree Farm Committee.
ABOUT SFI
The Sustainable Forestry Initiative® (SFI) advances sustainability through forest-focused collaborations. We are an independent, nonprofit organization that leverages four interconnected pillars of work: standards, conservation, community, and education. SFI works with the forest sector, conservation groups, academics, researchers, brand owners, resource professionals, landowners, educators, local communities, Indigenous Peoples, and governments. Collaborating with our network, we leverage SFI-certified forests and products as powerful tools to help solve sustainability challenges such as climate action, conservation of biodiversity, education of future generations, and sustainable economic development.
MEDIA CONTACT
Christine Leduc
VP, Communications and Government Relations
Sustainable Forestry Initiative
613-706-1114
media@forests.org
About American Tree Farm System
The American Tree Farm System® is a network of 82,000 family forest owners sustainably managing 24 million acres of forestland. It is the largest and oldest sustainable woodland system in the United States, internationally recognized, meeting strict third-‐party certification standards. The American Tree Farm System® is a program of the American Forest Foundation. Learn more at www.treefarmsystem.org.
Media Contact
Amanda Cooke
Media & Marketing Manager
American Forest Foundation
202-‐463-‐2731
ACooke@forestfoundation.org
About the South Carolina Forestry Commission
The South Carolina Forestry Commission is a state agency charged with the protection, promotion, and development of South Carolina’s forestland. Learn more at http://www.state.sc.us/forest/.
About Clemson University
Ranked No. 21 among national public universities, Clemson University is a major, land-‐grant, science-‐ and engineering-‐oriented research university that maintains a strong commitment to teaching and student success.Clemson is an inclusive, student-‐centered community characterized by high academic standards, a culture of collaboration, school spirit and a competitive drive to excel. Learn more at http://www.clemson.edu/.
