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FSC Certification in Canada

Canada is the world leader in FSC certification.

• Over 25% of the world's FSC-certified forests are in Canada;
• The largest FSC-certification, 5.5 million ha is in Alberta, Canada;
• Four regionally specific forest management standards; National Boreal, British Columbia, Great Lakes St. Lawrence, Maritimes.

FSC certification is creating positive ecological and social change in our forests and for our communities.

• 26 million ha (59 million acres) of Canadian forests are FSC-certified, which represents 15% of Canada's managed forests;
• Since 2005, the area of FSC-certified forest in Canada has quintupled (from 4.4 M ha to 26 M ha);
• Aboriginal Peoples, local communities and stakeholders have a say in how forests are managed, and their rights and responsibilities are respected;
• 780,000 ha of forests have been set aside by the forest industry to be transformed into protected areas.

Demand for FSC-certified products is driving the growth in FSC certification.

• In 2007, all six major Canadian banks used, or committed to use, FSC-certified paper for their annual accountability reports;
• Major companies and institutions have put in place procurement policies stating a preference for FSC-certified products. Dell Inc., Victoria Secret, Williams Sonoma, Alberta Ministry of Environment, Home Depot, Ikea, Kodak, LL Bean, Lowes, Nike, and Norm Thompson to name a few.
• Over 250 print locations are FSC-certified, and over 100 lines of FSC-paper are available
• Domtar, manufacturer of the EarthChoice® line of papers, experienced a 230% growth in FSC-certified paper sales from 2004 to 2006
• Scholastic Inc. makes the largest commitment ever to FSC-certified paper for printing of final Harry Potter book, 22 million lbs of paper.

Environmental and social groups identify FSC as the best thing we can do for our forests.

• “FSC has the highest environmental standard for forest management of any certification system in the world.” Monte Hummel, President, World Wildlife Fund Canada
• “The Nature Conservancy believes that FSC is curently the most rigorous forest management standard currently operating in the global arena.” Frances Price, Director of Forest Certification, The Nature Conservancy
• “FSC certification offers the only credible and independent assurance of good forestry in Canada.” Rachel Plotkin, Director of National Forests and Biodiversity Program, Sierra Club of Canada
• “[…] FSC has contributed significantly to developing processes that require meaningful dialogue between Aboriginal communities and the forest industry.”  Lorraine Rekmans, Executive Director of the National Aboriginal Forestry Association.
• "FSC is one of the most valuable tools we have for improving forest practices and protecting Canada's natural forests […].“  Anne Levesque, National Executive Director, CPAWS