One way to impact positively on unsustainable forestry practices is to have
the consumer 'make the ultimate' inference about the ethical practice of
cleacut logging, mini rotations, and single purpose forest plannning.

With the loss of old growth (ancient primary forests) there will be long
term ecological consequences and social consequences associated with
depletion and dependency.

There are no substitutes for forest recreation, and outputs such as clean
water, salmon, etc. but there are substitutes for wood in home construction.
The consumer can make a difference through purchasing power.

The consumer is very effective at using their purchasing power as a voting
tool outside the area of jurisdiction where they can vote by simply refusing
to pay for products that are derived from damaging environmental processes.

I wonder what the consumer is willing to pay for rainforest preservation?

Chao,



>From the Globe and Mail March 31, 2000

U.S. home builders to ban old-growth wood
Canada's lumber exports would be hit hard
by Kaufman & Broad's and Centex's new policies
BARRIE McKENNA
Washington Bureau
Friday, March 31, 2000


Washington -- Two of the largest home builders in the United States have
agreed to stop buying wood from old-growth and endangered forests, striking
a severe blow to Canada's $18-billion lumber export industry.

Under threat of protests and hard-hitting ads, Kaufman & Broad Home Corp. of
Los Angeles and Centex Corp. of Dallas are set to endorse sweeping
procurement policies that could lead to an eventual ban on much of the wood
they now buy in Canada, and particularly British Columbia.

"This is the beginning of the end for unsustainable logging in B.C.," said
Michael Brune of the San Francisco-based Rainforest Action Network (RAN).
"This is going to dramatically alter logging practices in B.C. and across
Canada."

The pending agreements mark a new foray by environmentalists into the U.S.
home building industry, which consumes roughly 40 per cent of the lumber
produced in British Columbia and a large chunk of exports from other
provinces.

Home Depot Inc., the largest building supply retailer in the world, and the
IKEA AB furniture chain committed last year to stop buying wood from
endangered forests, sending shock waves through Canada's forestry industry.

But the home building industry represents a much larger market for Canadian
wood -- and therefore a greater potential threat.

Kaufman & Broad, which built more than 22,000 homes and posted sales of
$3.8-billion (U.S.) last year, is expected to unveil its new policy as early
as today. The plan is endorsed by several U.S. environmental groups,
including RAN and the Washington-based Natural Resources Defence Council.

Centex, which is also operating under the threat of massive protests,
announced earlier this week that it too will ban wood from endangered
forests. But Mr. Brune said Centex's commitments fall short of RAN's
demands, and negotiations are continuing with the company to strengthen the
language in its policy.

Centex operates in 19 states and had sales of $5.1-billion in 1999.

Neither Centex nor Kaufman & Broad has yet agreed to a timetable for the
phaseout because officials concede they still don't know how much of the
wood they buy meets the test. But in a letter to RAN, a senior Kaufman &
Broad official said it is working on an internal audit to identify wood from
"any endangered forests."

Home Depot has said it will favour suppliers whose products are certified by
the internationally recognized Forest Stewardship Council or equivalent
designation. Kaufman & Broad is expected to do the same.

Many Canadian forest product companies are scrambling to get FSC
certification, which involves an elaborate evaluation of harvesting and
distribution methods. But so far only one small Canadian operator -- in the
B.C. Interior -- has been able to meet the exacting FSC standards.

British Columbia's forest industry instead wants an "inclusive"
certification system that would allow other designations, such as the far
weaker endorsement of the Canadian Standards Association.

"Forcing FSC certification would end up causing considerable problems in the
marketplace," warned Tom Tevlin, president of the Forest Alliance of British
Columbia, an industry-funded organization. "It would put out of the market
large pieces of the industry in both countries."

Mr. Tevlin added that while he supports the FSC, the reality is that U.S.
buyers simply won't be able to get enough wood if they insist on the
stricter certification.

The agreements come as environmental groups and six B.C. logging companies
are negotiating a moratorium on logging in the Great Bear rain forest, a
vast seven-million-hectare area of B.C. coastal mainland. Sources said a
final deal may be just days away.




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