Responsible forestry

Our responsible forestry combines high production of valuable renewable raw material with extensive consideration to the forest's other values – biodiversity, reindeer husbandry, ancient and cultural remains, experiences and much more.

Forest processes are long. It takes almost a century for a tree to become mature enough for harvesting and many processes in nature take even longer. Our forest management planning therefore extends across 100 years perspective or more.

A perpetual resource

forest

The forests are managed long-term and carefully so that they provide higher growth and greater harvesting opportunities over time. For example, we plant at least two new trees for every tree that is harvested.

Since we began to systematically measure our forest at the end of the 1940s, standing volume – the volume of living, growing trees – has increased by more than 60% and growth has more than doubled. During these years, we have also harvested more timber than what is currently standing on our land. This development has taken place because SCA has spent many years managing its forest with a long-term and conscientious approach. Standing volume, growth and harvesting potential will continue to increase. Correctly managed, the forest is a perpetual resource.

SCA's forestry also has targets other than timber production, as our forests hold many different values. Developing and preserving the biodiversity in the company's forests is the most important sustainability target in SCA's forest management. All flora and fauna on our lands must have the conditions to continue to live there in the future. This require a variety of habitats in our forests.

Use and preserve 

SCA’s entire forest holding has been subject to landscape ecological planning for many years. It helps us decide which forests we should use for timber production and which forests we should preserve or manage with a focus on benefiting biodiversity and other values. In some forests, we can combine forestry with measures that preserve or develop the forest’s conservation values.

Those forest where we focus on timber production are managed with basic environmental consideration, so called basic retention, where we always leave conservation patches, buffer zones and trees are left after all harvesting and other forestry measures. No harvesting takes place on non-productive land and land that is not classified as forest land.

SCA's forest management acquired FSC® certification (FSC®004466), Forest Stewardship Council®, in 1999. SCA's forest management was certified according to PEFC (PEFC/05-23-131), Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification, in November 2011. The certifications means that we comply with the FSC's and PEFC's guidelines for responsible forestry. 

Nature conservation – in various scales

This is how we work with our responsible forestry

Climate smart

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More about our forestry and our raw material sources

Major difference between managed and unmanaged forests

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