Corey Brinkema

As the U.S. Green Building Council updates its LEED program, there are valuable lessons the forest products industry can learn from the fiber side where booming demand for FSC-certified products has become a leading driver for change within the sector.

At the top of the list of lessons is this one: High standards work.

Since releasing its first sustainability goals in 1994, Kimberly-Clark (K-C), maker of Kleenex and Scott brands among others, has been setting and working toward industry-leading environmental improvement goals. Often K-C has been able to exceed the high goals ahead of the deadline. For example, in 2009, K-C adopted a groundbreaking fiber procurement policy that included a commitment to using 40 percent of either post-consumer recycled or FSC-certified fiber in all North American tissue products by the end of 2011. By the end of 2010, nearly 57 percent of North American fiber was FSC-certified or recycled, exceeding the goal by a wide margin and a year early.

Howard Connell

These procurement goals have had very real effects on improving forest management. Across North America, 135 million acres of forestland have been certified to FSC’s high standards, in part to meet demand from K-C. And we expect much more forestland to follow, especially as K-C and other industry players continue to grow the demand for FSC-certified fiber.

Which brings us to the second lesson we’ve learned: By clearly signaling commitment to high standards, the market will respond.

Through strong predictable demand, K-C has played a critical role in growing the market for products from responsibly managed forests, which is driving the supply side to expand availability of more sustainable solutions. While the potential benefits from an increase in FSC-certified forestland span North America, in places like the Southeastern U.S. they are especially significant. These forests have the highest biodiversity, face the greatest threats of conversion to non-forest uses and are the source of the majority of U.S. fiber. So, by clearly communicating consistent, high standards, K-C is able to help shape the marketplace and can point to real improvements in the forest.

Image courtesy of the FSC.

The final lesson relates to the other two: There is no going backwards. The market demands constant improvement and ever-higher standards.

In pulp, paper and tissue, demand for FSC-certified products is exploding. Companies like K-C have demonstrated that FSC certification is a viable part of a comprehensive sustainability strategy. And while it’s not realistic to expect any company to change overnight, leadership and aggressive goal setting is a proven recipe for success.

With these three lessons in mind, businesses on the solid wood side of the forest products industry should see these trends as both a bellwether of things to come and a business opportunity.