As companies embrace the need for tuning into sustainability, many are looking for ways to offset their paper and fiber-based materials consumption through environmental offsets such as reforestation projects and carbon offsets, to help them achieve a neutral or net positive impact. But the oversight and success of environmental offset projects can vary drastically, and it can be challenging to know the true impact of potential investments. Here we'll focus on important elements pertaining to reforestation projects. Let's get into the four parts that contribute to meaningful and credible sustainability.
Certified Partners: Credible Forestry Management
Tree planting may seem simple, but the process of restoring forests is multifaceted. It’s not just about putting seeds in the ground or transplanting seedlings. The process involves selecting appropriate species for the region, understanding local soil and climate conditions, and planting during the right seasonal windows.
PrintReleaf works with a network of carefully selected and certified reforestation partners who demonstrate organizational requirements such as: rights to land and planting rights, expertise in forestry best practices, successful track record in reforestation, transparent reporting, and financial health and stability.
Choosing The Correct Tree Species
Effective reforestation projects should be composed of native tree species for proper restoration. Non-native plants may not only be unsuitable for the terrain or local climatic conditions, making a project vulnerable to destruction, but they can also crowd out native plants which negatively effects the entire ecosystem and biodiversity of the area.
When selecting tree species to plant, it’s important to prioritize native, ecologically appropriate species as well as think about the condition of the land and the goals for the project. This can mean selecting species for climate change resilience, forest fire adaptations, wildlife habitat potential or durability against floods.
Additionally, when it comes to planting to offset the equivalence of forest impact due to paper consumption, it is important that projects not substitute tree species as it could risk disqualifying the accuracy of the tree equivalent required for your paper consumption offset.
A Powerful Tool with a Promise: Tree Survivability & Long-Term Projections
Reforestation is a powerful tool that can tackle tree loss and mitigate climate change, but only if the trees that are being planted survive. Many reforestation projects (not through PrintReleaf!) focus only on the number of trees planted, with little (or no) attention to how well they survive long-term.
Various studies evaluating the success of reforestation projects identify that survivability of trees can drop below 80%, but the success is highly dependent on a range of environmental and operational factors, and influenced by planting season, weather, environmental conditions and planting strategies. This further highlights the need for project management. What happens if trees don't survive? With PrintReleaf's global network of reforestation partners, a new tree is planted to compensate for the one lost. This is unique to PrintReleaf, and detailed in the PrintReleaf standard. This is not the case for trees that are planted outside of the PrintReleaf framework.
All PrintReleaf reforestation projects are designated for restoration and conservation efforts, to grow into forests that will last generations. Not only are our Certified Forestry Partners responsible for upholding the PrintReleaf Standard, all reforestation projects are audited, at minimum, within 8 years after the first contribution and performed again within 8 years after the final contribution. "Any shortfall of 100% net-survival will require corrective action" meaning that companies can credibly claim their offsets, knowing full well that the trees they're planting are growing and surviving.
Audits and Verification: Certifying Organizations
Trust is the cornerstone of any successful partnership. With PrintReleaf certification, you are communicating to customers and stakeholders that your reforestation efforts are being met with legitimacy and credibility.
Third-party verification ensures quantitative tree planting requirements, the ability to meet tree planting timeframes, species allocation and corresponding survival rates.
PrintReleaf has established a strict and innovative industry standard to verify the performance of our reforestation projects through our certifying bodies, who are leaders in inspection, verification, testing, certification and forestry.
So Why Choose a Sustainability Solution with PrintReleaf?
Reforestation is one of the most cost-effective ways to offset your paper and fiber-based footprint and mitigate the effects climate-change, but not all reforestation opportunities are created equally. When addressing your company’s environmental sustainability goals, make your entire sustainability investment will count with reliability in every tree you plant.
Learn more about The PrintReleaf Standard, our certifying organizations, and our global Reforestation Projects!