MONTPELIER, VT — The industry-run Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) falls short of the standards found in the independent Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) system, a June report indicates.

The report, by the National Wildlife Federation, Natural Resources Council of Maine and Environmental Advocates, is based on factors including wildlife habitat protection, water quality, forest ecosystem conservation and strengthening local economies.

“To be effective, forest management auditing systems must include public accountability, targets for improvement and real assurances that native wildlife is protected,” said Mark Lorenzo, NWF’s Northern Forest program manager. “Based on a side-by-side comparison, SFI’s weaker standards just don’t measure up in providing real protections for our forests, our communities and our wildlife in the Northern Forest.”

David Higby, executive director of Environmental Advocates said, “Details matter in forest management. FSC has a comprehensive set of detailed ecological indicators. SFI’s ecological indicators are much more general and mostly optional.”

According to the report, FSC is based on mandatory standards and a required and consistently applied third-party audit; SFI is not. FSC requires public reporting of audit results and enforceable conditions. FSC also has social criteria focusing on local communities and indigenous peoples.