This international certification recognizes American Tree Farms as certified providers of sustainable wood products

Family forest owners in the United States, who own nearly two-thirds of the country’s forestlands, received good news with the international approval of the American Tree Farm System® (ATFS) by the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification schemes (PEFC).

PEFC is an international, independent, non-profit, non-governmental organization, founded in 1999 which promotes sustainably managed forests through independent third party certification.

ATFS is the oldest and largest forest conservation, certification, and advocacy program in the United States. The 67 year-old program is sponsored by the American Forest Foundation.  Family forest landowners welcomed the endorsement by PEFC for certifying sustainably produced wood, a step that will open the door to new green markets for wood that is sustainably produced on their land.

The Geneva-based Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification schemes (PEFC) made the announcement after a 14-month rigorous review designed to provide assurance to purchasers that certified wood and paper products are in fact produced from sustainably managed forests.

For some U.S. companies like NewPage Corporation whose North American operations include a mill in Rumford, Maine, this change could not come soon enough.

“We sorely needed this endorsement in order to satisfy our customers who are demanding that our pulp and paper come from certified forest operations,” said Tony Lyons, Director of Fiber Supply at the NewPage Rumford Mill. He added that the market dynamics for sustainably produced wood have changed dramatically over just the last two years. “We can’t meet the demand, and that’s a shame when qualified forest owners are standing ready. This fixes that problem.”  

“This is fantastic news for conservation-minded family forest owners who are struggling to survive in tough economic times,” said Laurence Wiseman, President and Chief Executive Officer of the American Forest Foundation, the parent group of ATFS. “PEFC approval is the key to connecting more of the good operators to the rapidly growing marketplace of green manufacturers, distributors, retailers and consumers.” 

Forest landowners who voluntarily commit the extra time and expense to produce wood sustainably under the ATFS system will now qualify for access to the international markets that they never had before. Traditional markets for U.S. wood have been shrinking as more foreign wood gains control into those markets, and Wiseman believes this endorsement step will help U.S. growers.

The United States is permanently losing 1.5 million acres per year of family forestland to development. Many people mistakenly assume that forestland they see is owned by either the government or large paper companies, when in fact 60 percent of all the wood harvested in the U.S. actually comes from family forestlands. For many of these small forest landowners, achieving some economic return on their property is essential if they are to avoid the pressures of development. 

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