Scottish Woodlands Ltd has added PEFC (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification) Forest Management Certification capability for those forests in its Group and Resource Manager Schemes in the United Kingdom. The Certificate was issued to the Company by SGS Italy.
Clients of Scottish Woodlands whose forests are managed within these Schemes will now be able to access timber markets in the UK and Europe, which require PEFC certified timber. Chain of Custody arrangements are currently being finalised to allow the first volumes to move in due course.
Rob Shaw, SEQ and Contracts Director for Scottish Woodlands announced, “We had received expressions of interest from major UK timber processors about our ability to provide PEFC certified timber. This is something we have been considering for some time. The most important aspect within the UK is that there is one agreed Certification Standard which is the UK Woodland Assurance Standard (UKWAS), and so we are now able to complement our existing Certification arrangements using this same world-leading standard. We would like to thank everyone who has worked hard to bring this to fruition, especially Douglas Orr and his colleagues at SGS Qualifor”.
William Walker of PEFC UK welcomed the announcement and said that “it ensures timber from the forests managed by Scottish Woodlands can enter the market with the label from the world’s largest certification programme which now has a certified area in excess of 225 million hectares spread over five continents.”
Notes to Editors:
* For further information, please contact Rob Shaw, SEQ & Contracts Director (E: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. T: 01349 864999), Garry MacInnes, Resource and Group Scheme Manager (E: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. T: 0131 451 5154) or Jean Nairn, Business Support Manager (E: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. T: 0131 451 5154).
* Scottish Woodlands Ltd is one of the country’s leading forestry management companies and is predominantly an employee-owned company. The core activities are forest management, new woodland creation, timber harvesting, and generation of new forestry investment as well as a growing presence in utilities, landscaping and renewable energy. Scottish Woodlands operates from a network of 16 offices throughout the UK, utilising the company’s biggest asset - its staff. The business had a turnover of £40.3 million in the year to 30th September 2009. Web: www.scottishwoodlands.co.uk.
* Scottish Woodlands’ existing Resource Manager and Group Scheme now has over 82,000 hectares under management distributed across Great Britain and Northern Ireland.