Victory For Chile's Native Forests

Santiago, Chile —The biggest names in Chile’s wood products industry – Arauco and CMPC – announced far-reaching environmental commitments today that will lead to unprecedented protection for Chile’s native forests. The companies also agreed to work with environmental organizations in a long-term ‘Joint Solution Process’ to protect Chile’s native forests. Top home improvement chain Home Depot played an essential role in this historic commitment by bringing Arauco, CMPC and the environmental groups to the negotiating table.

The companies’ announcement marks a turning point in one of the most contentious environmental campaigns ever waged in Chile, a campaign which has included demonstrations across the U.S., a full-page ad in The New York Times and multiple front-page stories in Chile’s national papers. . Over the past year, major US wood consumers including North Pacific Group, Anderson Windows, Cascade Wood Products, and Alexandria Moulding have made commitments to protect Chile’s native forests.

“This first step by Arauco and CMPC leads the way to greater protection for Chile’s endangered native forests,” stated Aaron Sanger of ForestEthics. “This agreement shows that Chile's leading wood and paper producers want Chile's native forests to be protected, just as much as they want their U.S. business to succeed. This international collaboration has become a force for global forest protection.”

The first achievement of the negotiations between industry and environmentalists is called the ‘Chilean Joint Solutions Project’ and includes a commitment by Arauco and CMPC to protect Chile’s native forests by not converting or promoting the conversion of these forests into tree farms. The single biggest threat to the survival of the one million acres of native forests that the companies collectively own is conversion to tree farms. Chile’s native forests include cool, lush temperate rainforests that are some of the most biodiverse forests in the world.

Arauco and CMPC are the two largest wood and pulp producers in Chile. Together, they account for nearly 80% of the country’s wood and pulp production, virtually all of which comes from pine tree farms. The wood is used for products like doors, windows and decorative trim for export to the U.S. Chile is the world’s largest producer of chemical pulp, which is used to make to paper products. Home Depot is the world’s largest lumber retailer.

"When Home Depot first committed to stop selling wood from endangered forests in 1999, we knew that it had the power to help transform the timber industry worldwide. Today, we applaud Home Depot for its work to get Chile's two largest loggers to protect native forests from conversion to single-species tree farms." - Jennifer Krill, Old Growth Campaign Director Rainforest Action Network.

Further commitments of the Chilean Joint Solutions Project include:

• A commitment to the further protection of Chile’s native forests by defining, identifying and mapping the one million acres of company-owned native forested lands.
• Policies to not harvest trees from any native forests owned by Arauco and CMPC.
• Participation in the ongoing ‘Chile Joint Solutions Project,’ which will include future mutually agreed-upon goals.

"The native forests of Chile include some of the world's rarest and most endangered forest types, particularly temperate rainforest," said Malu Sierra of Defensores del Bosque Chileno. "These two companies are major producers of wood and paper that is consumed all over the world, so they are aware that the world wants forests such as ours to be protected."

Environmental groups involved in the campaign include: (In the U.S.)ForestEthics, American Lands Alliance, Natural Resources Defense Council, Greenpeace and Rainforest Action Network. (In Chile) Defensores Del Bosques Chileno, Instituto Ecologia Politica and Greenpeace.

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-------------------- MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING ------------------------

Signed by Arauco, CMPC, Home Depot, and the coalition of environmental groups including (In the U.S.) American Lands Alliance, Natural Resources Defense Council, Greenpeace and Rainforest Action Network, (In Chile) Defensores Del Bosques Chileno, Instituto Ecologia Politica and Greenpeace.

In recognition of a shared interest in the healthy sustainability of Chile’s native forests, the undersigned companies (Companies) and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) have agreed to participate in an ongoing constructive process, based upon respect and mutually agreed-upon goals.

NGOs recognize the leadership that CMPC and Arauco have in the chilean forestry industry and in supporting high plantation management standards.

Companies have approved written, public Non Substitution Declarations and associated implementation procedures. These declarations include a commitment not to promote substitution by others and have become part of CMPC’s and Arauco’s existing environmental management systems. The process of monitoring the compliance with these declarations and implementation procedures will be open with a high degree of transparency and public disclosure, including reasonable observations by third parties.

CMPC and Arauco currently have a policy not to harvest trees from native forested lands they own in Chile, and they have established a significant and important part of their plantations over eroded lands. Several years ago, CMPC and Arauco each established world class native forest conservation projects in Chile including Parque Alessandri (CMPC) and Parque Oncol (Arauco). Companies have also begun the process of Conservation Assessment for native forested lands owned by CMPC and Arauco in Chile, according to terms agreed with the NGOs. These initiatives reflect CMPC’s and Arauco’s interest in protecting Chile’s native forests. Companies recognize that collaborating with the NGOs on the Conservation Assessments can help them continue their commitment to environmental responsibility and to provide for the protection of native forests in Chile as they are defined, identified and mapped. NGOs recognize that collaborating with the Companies can help to protect Chile’s endangered forests and to develop more ecologically and socially sensitive management of Chile’s plantations.

--------------------------------------------- EN ESPAÑOL --------------------------------------------------

COMUNICADO DE PRENSA

HISTORICO ACUERDO ENTRE AMBIENTALISTAS, LAS EMPRESAS CMPC, FORESTAL ARAUCO Y LA DISTRIBUIDORA HOME DEPOT, CONSTITUYE UN HITO EN LA PROTECCION DE LOS BOSQUES CHILENOS

La campaña internacional para proteger y conservar los amenazados bosques chilenos ha obtenido un logro histórico con el anuncio conjunto hecho por ambientalistas, la distribuidora internacional Home Depot y las dos empresas forestales más importantes de Chile, Arauco y CMPC. El anuncio marca un punto de inflexión muy positivo en una de las más trascendentes y conflictivas campañas que se hayan llevado a cabo en el país, que incluyó actos de apoyo a lo largo de todo Estados Unidos, un aviso a página completa en The New York Times publicado por las organizaciones ambientalistas y diversos reportajes en los medios nacionales.

El primer logro de esta nueva colaboración entre la industria forestal y los ambientalistas, llamado “Proyecto Chileno de Soluciones Conjuntas”, es un protocolo de acuerdo en el que las empresas Arauco y CMPC se comprometen públicamente a no sustituir los bosques nativos ni promover en terceros su conversión por plantaciones exóticas. Asimismo, las empresas se comprometen a preservar más de 350 mil hectáreas de ecosistemas nativos de propiedad de ambas. Esta iniciativa señala el comienzo del fin de la sustitución del bosque nativo en Chile, lo que no se consigna siquiera en las Indicaciones a la Ley de Bosque Nativo que se encuentra en trámite en el Senado.

Arauco y CMPC son las empresas del sector forestal que más producen en Chile, sumando casi el 80 por ciento de la producción forestal, principalmente proveniente de plantaciones de pino. La mayor parte se destina a los mercados de celulosa, a madera aserrada, así como productos con mayor valor agregado - puertas, ventanas, paneles y molduras-. Una proporción significativa de estos últimos se exporta a Estados Unidos.

“Con el logro de esta primera etapa, Arauco y CMPC han trabajado con los ambientalistas buscando la protección de los bosques nativos”, declaró Aaron Sanger de la organización norteamericana ForestEthics. “El desafío será seguir trabajando juntos para solucionar otros problemas que aún afectan a los bosques chilenos”. Por su parte, Malú Sierra, de Defensores del Bosque Chileno, expresó: “Este acuerdo muestra que los líderes en la producción de madera y papel desean que los bosques nativos sean protegidos, tanto como quieren que sus negocios en Estados Unidos sean exitosos”.

Otros compromisos que incluye el “Proyecto Chileno de Soluciones Conjuntas” son:

• Definir, identificar y mapear las 350 mil hectáreas de bosques que poseen las dos empresas en conjunto.
• No cosechar árboles nativos de ningún bosque de propiedad de Arauco y CMPC.
• Elaboración de informes públicos regulares de monitoreo sobre el cumplimiento de los acuerdos de resguardo de la integridad del bosque nativo.
• Seguir participando en las siguientes etapas del proceso “Proyecto Chileno de Soluciones Conjuntas”, que incluirá metas acordadas con las organizaciones ambientalistas.