PRESS RELEASE | PROTECT THE FOREST SWEDEN
SCA, Europe’s largest private forest owner, has made headlines across Europe this winter. They have been exposed repeatedly in the media: for systematic destruction of natural forests and logging areas with protected species, and for logging without consent from the indigenous Sámi. Instead of decreasing their environmental and social impact, SCA now threatens to drop their environmental label FSC in order to continue with business as usual.
NGOs and scientists now fear that by dropping the FSC label, SCA wants to lower its already low, and heavily criticized, environmental standard. The minimum levels of nature conservation in the Swedish FSC standard are far below threshold levels and international environmental visions and targets for nature conservation. Despite its massive flaws, the Swedish FSC standard does require a modest minimum of five percent set-asides and that another five percent is managed without clearcuts and with higher nature consideration.
– Dropping FSC is an alarming signal from SCA that they intend to log more aggressively in old-growth and natural forests important for the climate, biodiversity and the indigenous Sámi reindeer herding culture, says Roger Adolfsson from Protect the Forest Sweden.
SCA states that it is leaving the FSC because it believes that the regulations threaten their access to raw materials and thus limiting “climate-smart”, renewable forest-based products. Researchers, such as Göran Englund at Umeå University, oppose this and believe that the substitution effect is too low to justify the increased felling, and that the benefits from not logging are greater.
– It will not be the “climate-smart products” that SCA claims. This is about SCA planning to increase felling, which in turn will lead to higher emissions,” says Englund.
In addition, the situation for biodiversity in Sweden’s forests is alarming. In a recently published evaluation of Sweden’s environmental targets, authorities state that we are not reaching the targets regarding our forests and the overall development is negative. “The felling of natural forest remnants and other forests with long continuity leads to an accumulating loss of important habitats for threatened species.”
Protect the Forest has made a report on SCA, showing more than 500 cases where the company has logged or is planning to log forests with documented high conservation values.
SCA is threatening indigenous rights
The tension between clearcut forestry and indigenous reindeer herding has also intensified the past year, with an infected conflict between Ohredahke sámi community and SCA. The reason behind this is that SCA has logged thousands of hectares without asking for their consent. Ohredahke has responded by withdrawing all consent from logging within their core grazing areas – but this has not been respected by SCA. NGOs suspect that by dropping FSC, SCA aims to put aside any influence from the reindeer herders. Jenny Wik Karlsson, COO at SSR, the organisation for Sámi in Sweden, commented the news in Dagens Nyheter:
–It is sad. It is simply terrible. It shows that they do not want to conduct sustainable forestry in Sweden. The demands made by us, the Sami villages and the environmental movement are not unreasonable, but are in line with the conventions on human rights, climate and biodiversity that Sweden has signed.
The Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter was first to uncover that SCA plans to drop their FSC-certification on June 1st this year. The company is one of Europe’s largest forest industries and a major supplier of cardboard and pulp to the European markets. Among their trade partners are Essity, Nestlé and DS Smith.
– The risk is extremely high—almost a certainty—that products from SCA originate from forests with high natural values or from areas that infringe on Sámi Indigenous rights. Companies trading with SCA, who truly value sustainability, need to take immediate actions to eliminate this risk by finding other suppliers with higher standards, says Daniel Rutschman from Protect the Forest.
Together with Nestlé, Protect the Forest recently visited SCA’s forestry in Sweden and met with the Sámi reindeer herders. After this field-trip, Nestlé have publicly announced that they are exploringing “the decrease of their sourcing demand from the Swedish Northern Boreal region”. Protect the Forest are of the opinion that the time for action is now.
Taking a break to break the rules
SCA states that they are not leaving FSC permanently, but taking a “pause”. This approach would let SCA log forests in clear violation of the FSC-regulations, and when the forests with the highest values for biodiversity and reindeer herding have been logged, they could again certify their forestry.
– We see this as a great fraud and a way to deceive the market. Either a company aims to carry out sustainable forestry or they don’t. It shouldn’t be possible to “pause” a certification, log everything against the rules, and then return, says Roger Adolfsson.
Protect the Forest’s analysis is that SCA has overharvested for decades, and in order to sustain their logging volumes they now need to open up previously unavailable forests, such as nature conservation set-asides, Woodland Key Habitats (forests with high conservation values), natural forests with red listed species, and subalpine old-growth forests.
-SCA’s threat to drop out of the FSC shows that voluntary systems for nature conservation and forestry are very vulnerable, and have reached the end of the road. What we need is strong legislation that ensures sustainable forest management, indigenous rights, and that ensures forest protection and restoration in line with international environmental goals and scientific recommendations. This is the only way to achieve long-term solutions, which cannot be abandoned at will, says Daniel Rutschman, international campaign leader at Protect the Forest.
Elin Götmark, Chairman of the board
Roger Adolfsson, Board member
Contact person, Protect the Forest
Daniel Rutschman, daniel.rutschman@skyddaskogen.se, +46 76-112 88 26
BACKGROUND
SCA & the Sámi
The indigenous Sámi reindeer herding has been under heavy pressure from industrial logging in northern Sweden, and for many Sámi villages there is not enough grazing land left after decades of clearcutting. The conflicts between reindeer herders and forest companies has intensified the past few years. Swedish legislation is weak in protecting the rights of the Sámi, but the FSC regulations clearly demand indigenous consent (FPIC) when companies want to log within traditional Sámi land.
But during the winter, SCA has shown no intent to decrease logging in sensitive areas. Instead, they have lashed out against their critics. They have also made false claims that there is consent from Ohredahke, and that they have not been able to reach them. However, when representatives from the Sámi community tried to meet with SCA, they were not welcomed at their headquarters.
The indigenous Sámi reindeer herders of Ohredahke in northern Sweden sounded the alarm in January, as their reindeer are starving after decades of SCA clearcutting their traditional grazing lands. On January 24th, Ohredahke withdrew all consent to logging within core grazing areas. Since then, activists from Greenpeace and the Forest Rebellion have been on patrol, building barricades and stopping SCA’s logging machines as they try to log on indigenous land without consent.
– Unfortunately, the Sámi are all too familiar with the fact that when large and influential exploitation interests do not ‘get’ what they want, various types of pressure are exerted to achieve their aims. Acting as SCA is doing now is a clear example of this,” says Matti Blind Berg, President of SSR, the organisation for Sámi in Sweden.
SCA-Files “500 single mistake”
The report SCA-Files, produced by Protect the Forest, reveals the extent of the unsustainable forestry practices carried out by the Swedish forestry company Svenska Cellulosa AB (SCA). The report contains over 550 documented examples of forests with high natural values—either already logged or at risk of logging—and effectively debunks SCA’s recurring defense of “isolated mistakes” and “the human factor.”
The review shows that the risk is extremely high—almost a certainty—that products from SCA originate from forests with high natural values or from areas that infringe on Sámi Indigenous rights. The logging represents a systematic and large-scale destruction of Sweden’s natural heritage.
The report also exposes a larger systemic failure: the existing certification system, FSC, fails to ensure socially and environmentally responsible forestry. The FSC label continues to be used as a quality mark, despite certified companies like SCA repeatedly violating the values the certification is meant to protect.
Read more: sca-files.skyddaskogen.se
SCA provides false information about existing natural values
After a series of controversies regarding logging activities, the Swedish Forest Agency has decided that the forestry company SCA may be forced to pay up to 2.1 million SEK in fines unless the company improves its natural value assessments.
The decision concerns a logging area in the Ramsele region, where it was revealed that the forest had significantly higher natural values than SCA had reported.
The Swedish Forest Agency sends SCA back to the drawing board
SCA has recently faced harsh criticism from both authorities and environmental organizations, particularly regarding logging in areas where endangered species such as the green club-tailed dragonfly (Ophiogomphus cecilia), the Siberian jay, and the three-toed woodpecker are found. The Swedish Forest Agency has now sided with environmental organizations Greenpeace and Forest Rebellion (Skogsupproret), stating that SCA must conduct thorough assessments before logging can proceed.
The company defends itself by claiming they already conduct careful surveys, asserting that the orchid Goodyera repens – despite its red-list status and significant decline – is “common.” Critics argue, however, that this is part of a pattern where the company systematically downplays natural values to facilitate logging.
– This is no exception. We see the same pattern time and time again in SCA’s forestry practices,” says Kim Hultgren from Skogsvärn, who also mentions that more legal actions are underway.
The Swedish forestry model has failed
Since the 1990s, Sweden has relied on FSC to guarantee sustainable forest management, allowing forestry to operate almost freely under the slogan: freedom with responsibility. This approach has not worked, creating vulnerable voluntary certification systems that do not ensure long-term sustainability. It has been over 25 years of lost time in creating solid legislation that truly protects natural values and Indigenous rights.
Now, with Europe’s largest forest owner, SCA, planning to leave FSC this summer, several stakeholders fear that SCA will begin logging subalpine old-growth forests, cut continuity forests that were previously set aside as voluntary conservation areas, and further undermine Indigenous rights. All of this clearly demonstrates that Sweden and the EU lack the tools and legislation needed to protect the vital forest ecosystems of the EU, and that Sweden, especially the forestry company SCA, is showing red flags as a high-risk source for forest raw materials and products.
More companies dropping out of the FSC?
On April 13th, the forest company Holmen also announced they are considering dropping out of FSC Sweden. Holmen is Sweden’s fourth largest land owner with around one million hectares of forest land, most of it in northern Sweden on traditional Sámi land.