Forests cover nearly one-third of the Earth’s land area and are home to the majority of terrestrial biodiversity. They are essential to the health of our planet, offering a wide range of ecosystem services—sequestering carbon, purifying water, conserving soil, and supporting countless plant and animal species. They also provide social and economic value, contributing to livelihoods, income generation, and employment for millions of people around the world.
Forests are directly or indirectly linked to all 17 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), making them a cornerstone of global sustainability. For Sappi, forests are not just critical natural resources—they are central to our business. Our reliance on forests brings both opportunity and responsibility. Healthy forests are a critical nature-related consideration for our business. We continuously identify and manage a range of dependencies, impacts, risks, and opportunities associated with them
The forest products industry plays a key role in keeping forestland forested by creating dependable markets for responsibly grown wood. This economic incentive is critical to promoting long-term forest management and discouraging land conversion to other uses.
At Sappi, we believe that by actively managing and investing in forest health, we help secure a sustainable future for both people and planet. Forest management practices, which rely on scientific knowledge of silvicultural best practices applicable in respective vegetation zones, promote forest health, growth, diversity, resilience, and carbon sequestration.
Forests cover nearly one-third of the Earth’s land area and are home to the majority of terrestrial biodiversity. They are essential to the health of our planet, offering a wide range of ecosystem services—sequestering carbon, purifying water, conserving soil, and supporting countless plant and animal species. They also provide social and economic value, contributing to livelihoods, income generation, and employment for millions of people around the world.
Forests are directly or indirectly linked to all 17 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), making them a cornerstone of global sustainability. For Sappi, forests are not just critical natural resources—they are central to our business. Our reliance on forests brings both opportunity and responsibility. Healthy forests are a critical nature-related consideration for our business. We continuously identify and manage a range of dependencies, impacts, risks, and opportunities associated with them
The forest products industry plays a key role in keeping forestland forested by creating dependable markets for responsibly grown wood. This economic incentive is critical to promoting long-term forest management and discouraging land conversion to other uses.
At Sappi, we believe that by actively managing and investing in forest health, we help secure a sustainable future for both people and planet. Forest management practices, which rely on scientific knowledge of silvicultural best practices applicable in respective vegetation zones, promote forest health, growth, diversity, resilience, and carbon sequestration.
Promoting sustainable forest management
Responsible, active forest management is critical to maintain a healthy balance of economic, social and ecological attributes from the world’s forests for present and future generations.
Healthy, robust, well-managed forests support community well-being, provide a haven for wildlife and diverse plant species, protect watersheds and play a critical role in the carbon sequestration cycle. When timber is responsibly harvested, it can contribute to the maintenance and restoration of resilient, renewable forests.
In South Africa we own and lease approximately 400,000 hectares, of which 138,000 hectares are maintained by Sappi Forests to conserve the natural habitat and biodiversity found there. We implement a comprehensive plantation management system to ensure our plantations are managed in accordance with legislation, best practice and consideration of social and environmental aspects. The plantation management system and its implementation meet all the requirements for FSC and PEFC Forest Management certification standards.
Plantations are healthy functional forests that are managed to promote tree growth and all-natural processes, and are protected from damage caused by over-exploitation, fire, pests, diseases and soil degradation. Sappi balances harvesting with replanting to maintain the forest cover of our plantations
Certification is an effective tool
The forest certification systems that Sappi works with (FSC, PEFC, SFI) are effective tools for promoting sustainable consumption and production, and for combating deforestation, forest degradation and illegal logging by providing proof of legality and responsible management, harvesting and manufacturing practices.
They establish specific forest management, woodfibre sourcing, traceability, Chain of Custody tracking and marketing requirements for certified organisations, provide a framework for independent third-party auditing, and govern the use of promotional and product claims.
Forest certification’s positive impact on the world’s forests is a result of the improved forest management practices in certified forests coupled with the stringent sourcing and due diligence requirements for non-certified woodfibre inputs. Certificate holders must ensure that all non-certified woodfibre inputs mixed with certified material are from controlled, non-controversial sources.
Protecting biodiversity by management
The management of working forests is important in securing biodiversity. The great diversity of forest types calls for a variety of silvicultural approaches and measures, which often imitate natural processes.
Modern forest practices include measures like leaving fallen and standing dead wood, decaying wood, groups of retention trees, as well as maintaining buffer zones and enhancing diverse tree species composition or protecting key biotope areas to enhance biodiversity within managed forests.
In the land we own and manage in South Africa, approximately 139,000 hectares is set aside to conserve the natural habitat and biodiversity. This includes indigenous forests, grasslands and wetlands.
Fast facts
- Healthy, well-managed forests make a significant contribution to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
- Sustainable forestry contributes to important ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration as well as water resources, soil and biodiversity conservation.
- At a social level, sustainable forest management contributes to livelihoods, income generation and employment.
- Approximately a third of the timber plantations which Sappi owns and leases in South Africa are managed to conserve natural habitats.
- All our mills are Chain of Custody certified to one or more of the following: FSC™, PEFC, SFI®.
- All our plantations in South Africa are both FSC and PEFC certified for Forest Management.
- We neither harvest nor buy wood which originates from tropical natural forests.
- We have a stringent wood sourcing policy in place and robust sourcing practices to ensure daily conformance.
Halting deforestation is critical
Halting deforestation is critical to combating climate change and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. FAO defines deforestation as the conversion of forest to other land use whether human-induced or not. It includes areas of forest converted to agriculture, pasture, water reservoirs, mining and urban areas. Deforestation is chiefly caused by the conversion of forest land to agriculture and livestock areas. Deforestation alone accounts for about 11% of greenhouse gas emissions.
Sappi and the SDGs
We’ve set ambitious targets aligned with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the seven areas where we believe Sappi can make the biggest impact.