Skip to main content

Spotlight in Brief: 2020 Sustainability Award Winner for Sustainable Forest Management

Leadership in Sustainability Award: Sustainable Forest Management

Member Spotlight: Evergreen Packaging

A healthy paper and wood products industry is complementary to and promotes healthy forests, which is why it’s a vital part of our Better Practices, Better Planet 2020 sustainability initiative. 

AF&PA member Evergreen Packaging was recently recognized for their leadership in sustainable forest management and work to help family forest landowners increase access to forest certification programs.   

Partnering with the American Forest Foundation, Evergreen Packaging supported the development of a Landscape Management Plan (LMP) for the state of South Carolina, which incorporates a high-level, holistic approach to forest management. LMP incorporates regional priorities such as wildlife habitat, species biodiversity and clean water supply – all components of responsible forest management. By adopting the LMP, landowners can reduce costs and expedite American Tree Farm Systems® certification for their family forest. 

Along with developing LMP’s, Evergreen Packaging is a founding member of the Appalachian Woodlands Alliance and has been instrumental in helping develop the Smallholder Access Program, a two-year Forest Stewardship Council® pilot program targeted to southern and central Appalachia woodland owners under 250 acres.

Both programs are reducing barriers and increasing access for small landowners to participate in forest certification programs and ultimately increase sustainable forest management practices in the United States.

Learn more about AF&PA’s sustainability initiative.

The American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) serves to advance public policies that foster economic growth, job creation and global competitiveness for a vital sector that makes the essential paper and packaging products Americans use every day. The U.S. forest products industry employs more than 925,000 people, largely in rural America, and is among the top 10 manufacturing sector employers in 44 states. Our industry accounts for approximately 4.7% of the total U.S. manufacturing GDP, manufacturing more than $435 billion in products annually. AF&PA member companies are significant producers and users of renewable biomass energy and are committed to making sustainable products for a sustainable future through the industry’s decades-long initiative — Better Practices, Better Planet 2030