Sustainable Forestry Initiative
Promoting the perpetual growing and harvesting of trees in a way that supports the protection of wildlife, plants, soil, and water quality in Tennessee since 1995.
Plan for your forest, invest in your future.
Collectively and individually, SFI members promote the practice of sustainable forestry on all lands by funding logger and forester education and encouraging landowners to manage their forests sustainably. Many SFI program participants have also been third party certified to the SFI Standard by independent auditors.
-
SFI standards have become the fastest growing, highly trusted solution that can support a growing need for products from the forest, as the drive to reduce carbon pollution and waste intensifies. We are working to shape markets today and ensure that sustainably managed forests will continue to play a crucial role in keeping the planet healthy.
-
As part of the new SFI standards, Conservation of Biodiversity and Forests of Exceptional Conservation Value (FECV) have become focal points in the new standard. SFI certified organizations have been supporting the conservation of biodiversity since their initial certification to the Fiber Sourcing Standard. However, the new 2022 standard has introduced new requirements and approaches to help promote and conserve biodiversity and Forests of Exceptional Value (FECVs). An effort has been made to gather and analyze data across the entire state of Tennessee related to the location of known imperiled (G2) and critically imperiled (G1) species and ecological communities, which define FECVs.
-
-
The Sustainable Forestry Initiative’s (SFI) updated forest certification standards provide solutions to some of the world’s most pressing sustainability challenges. Sustainable forest management and the procurement of wood products from sustainably managed sources are critical tools.
Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), know forests play a critical role in addressing climate and storing carbon.
Resources
Southern Region SIC Climate Smart Forestry Regional Assessment for 2022
-
Managing forests to limit their susceptibility to fire has been a core part of program plans for SFI-certified organizations for many years. Working in collaboration to raise awareness of the roles of fire in forests, both positive and negative, is also an activity that many SFI-certified organizations have actively undertaken. In 2021, SFI released the Project Learning Tree® Activity Collection Nature of Fire as a resource to support youth and community education. Objective 10 in the 2022 SFI Forest Management standard recognizes the growing importance of promoting fire resilience in forests, especially in the context of climate change, and formalizes the opportunities for collaborative efforts that many SFI-certified organizations have made as part of their multifaceted forest management programs.
Water Quality Complaints should be filed with the
Tennessee Dept. of Environment & Conservation
Hotline # 888-891-8332