SCA, Europe\u2019s largest private forest owner, has made headlines across Europe this winter. They have been <\/strong>exposed<\/strong><\/a> repeatedly in the media: for <\/strong>systematic destruction<\/strong><\/a> of natural forests and logging areas <\/strong>with protected species<\/strong><\/a>, and for <\/strong>logging without consent<\/strong><\/a> from the indigenous S\u00e1mi. Instead of decreasing their environmental and social impact, SCA now threatens to <\/strong>drop their environmental label FSC<\/strong><\/a> in order to continue with business as usual.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 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<\/a>. 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. SCA states<\/strong><\/a> that it is leaving the FSC<\/strong> because it believes that the regulations threaten their access to raw materials and thus limiting \u201cclimate-smart\u201d, renewable forest-based products. Researchers, such as G\u00f6ran Englund at Ume\u00e5 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. The tension between<\/strong> clearcut forestry and indigenous reindeer herding has also intensified the past year, with an infected conflict between Ohredahke<\/a> s\u00e1mi 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. <\/em>Jenny Wik Karlsson, <\/em>COO at SSR, the organisation for S\u00e1mi in Sweden, commented the news in Dagens Nyheter: The Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter<\/a> was first to uncover that SCA plans to drop their FSC-certification on June 1st this year. The company is one of Europe\u2019s largest forest industries and a major supplier of cardboard and pulp to the European markets. Among their trade partners are Essity<\/strong>, Nestl\u00e9 <\/strong>and DS Smith<\/strong>. Together with Nestl\u00e9, Protect the Forest recently visited SCA\u2019s forestry in Sweden and met with the S\u00e1mi reindeer herders. After this field-trip, Nestl\u00e9 have publicly announced that they are exploringing \u201cthe decrease of their sourcing demand from the Swedish Northern Boreal region\u201d. Protect the Forest are of the opinion that the time for action is now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n SCA states that they are not leaving FSC permanently, but taking a \u201cpause\u201d. 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. <\/p>\n\n\n\n – 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\u2019t. It shouldn\u2019t be possible to \u201cpause\u201d a certification, log everything against the rules, and then return, says Roger Adolfsson.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Protect the Forest\u2019s<\/strong> 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n -SCA\u2019s 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Elin G\u00f6tmark, Chairman of the board Contact person, Protect the Forest<\/strong> The indigenous S\u00e1mi reindeer herding has been under heavy pressure from industrial logging in northern Sweden, and for many S\u00e1mi 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 S\u00e1mi, but the FSC regulations clearly demand indigenous consent (FPIC) when companies want to log within traditional S\u00e1mi land.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 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 S\u00e1mi community tried to meet with SCA, they were not welcomed at their headquarters<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The indigenous S\u00e1mi 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<\/a> have been on patrol, building barricades and stopping SCA\u2019s logging machines as they try to log on indigenous land without consent. The report SCA-Files<\/em>, 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\u2014either already logged or at risk of logging\u2014and effectively debunks SCA\u2019s recurring defense of \u201cisolated mistakes\u201d and \u201cthe human factor.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The review shows that the risk is extremely high\u2014almost a certainty\u2014that products from SCA originate from forests with high natural values or from areas that infringe on S\u00e1mi Indigenous rights. The logging represents a systematic and large-scale destruction of Sweden\u2019s natural heritage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
– 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 S\u00e1mi reindeer herding culture, <\/em>says Roger Adolfsson from Protect the Forest Sweden.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
– It will not be the \u201cclimate-smart products\u201d that SCA claims. This is about SCA planning to increase felling, which in turn will lead to higher emissions,” says Englund.
<\/em>
In addition, the situation for biodiversity in Sweden\u2019s forests is alarming. In a recently published evaluation<\/a> of Sweden\u2019s environmental targets, authorities state that we are not reaching the targets regarding our forests and the overall development is negative. \u201cThe felling of natural forest remnants and other forests with long continuity leads to an accumulating loss of important habitats for threatened species.\u201d
<\/em>
Protect the Forest<\/strong> has made a report<\/a> on SCA, showing more than 500 cases where the company has logged or is planning to log forests with documented high conservation values.<\/p>\n\n\n\nSCA is threatening indigenous rights<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
–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.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
– The risk is extremely high\u2014almost a certainty\u2014that products from SCA originate from forests with high natural values or from areas that infringe on S\u00e1mi 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\nTaking a break to break the rules<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Roger Adolfsson, Board member<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Daniel Rutschman, daniel.rutschman@skyddaskogen.se<\/a>, +46 76-112 88 26<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nBACKGROUND<\/h1>\n\n\n\n
SCA & the S\u00e1mi<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
– Unfortunately, the S\u00e1mi are all too familiar with the fact that when large and influential exploitation interests do not \u2018get\u2019 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 S\u00e1mi in Sweden.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nSCA-Files \u201c500 single mistake”<\/h2>\n\n\n\n