The first anniversary of APP’s Forest Conservation Policy (FCP) event took place in Jakarta on February 6th. On the occasion of the event Company’s Managing Director of sustainability and stakeholder engagement Aida Greenbury said. ” the 1st anniversary of the FCP is a good moment to step back and take stock of our progress. Most importantly, the moratorium on natural forest and undeveloped peatland has proven effective and, as of 31st August 2013, our mills no longer accept wood from areas of natural forests across Indonesia.
Meanwhile, our High Conservation Value (HCV) assessments, which cover 2.6 million hectares of our suppliers’ concessions, will be completed next month with High Carbon Stock (HCS) forest assessments to follow in Q3 2014. This has been a major undertaking. Once these are complete we’ll be in a position to develop one of Indonesia’s most sophisticated and comprehensive Integrated Sustainable Forest Management Plans. This will ensure we manage Indonesia’s forests and peatlands using the best practices available to us.”
However Greenbury believes there is still lot to be done.” The goal of achieving zero deforestation across Indonesia is too ambitious and complex to be reached by one company alone. We hope that we have proven that we are committed to playing a lead role in the pursuit of zero deforestation. However, if we are to be genuinely successful in this bigger goal, other businesses, governments and the NGO community must collaborate more effectively with us in an effort to truly protect rainforests and peatlands in Indonesia.” Opines Greenbury. She adds. “We have set out four key priorities for 2014 that must be addressed by broader industry players to bring about zero deforestation. As we embark on the next stage of our journey it is encouraging to see that other companies have started to make commitments which protect our precious natural resources and I hope that, by joining together, we can accelerate progress still further.”
For more on FCP Anniversary report and watch highlights from the panel debate we hosted with a range of stakeholders, including The Forest Trust, Greenpeace, Rainforest Action Network, WWF and Ekologika go to: http://www.asiapulppaper.com/news-media/events/fcp-one-year-anniversary.
