We, the undersigned, wish to express our concern about the certification of plantations in our country by the FSC, which is granting green labels to monocultures that have proved to be socially and environmentally destructive.
We are aware that the FSC is conducting a review of its policy for the certification of plantations and it is our hope that the result of this process will be an end to the certification by the FSC of this kind of plantations.
However, the fact is that the FSC has already certified large areas of plantations in Chile (more than 420,000 hectares), whose certification must be reassessed by the current process of review, to determine whether they deserve to keep the FSC?s label or not.
In such sense, we think that there are well documented cases in Chile about plantations that should have never been awarded such label and that merit their de-certification. Cases of companies such as Forestal Monte Águila, that belongs to CMPC (Mininco); Forestal Bio Bio (Forestal Arauco); whose forestry economic groups are seriously questioned and that are also part of the list of certifications, without considering the environmental impacts and the conflicts over territories with Mapuche communities. There are other cases of companies whose total area of properties was arbitrarily certified, without considering any criteria on a case by case and on a plot by plot basis, especially when there are pending controversies for socio-environmental problems and cases of territorial conflicts with rural communities.
As evidence of the fact that the ongoing review process aims at a deep change in this aspect, we demand the immediate de-certification of those companies that more clearly breach the FSC?s mandate and the commencement of a process of analysis of the remaining companies.
In line with the foregoing, we demand the de-certification and the immediate review of the criteria referred to plantations of Monteaguila, BioBio, Terranova (former Millalemu), AnChile, Bosques Cautín, Tornagaleones, among others
Sincerely,
- Observatorio Latinoamericano de Conflictos Ambientales / OLCA, Santiago.
- Agrupación Konapewman de Temuco
- Equipos de trabajo Coordinación de identidades territoriales Mapuche (CITEM)-
- Colectivo de acción por los Derechos Ambientales, Novena Región.
- Agrupación Koyam Newen, Temuco
- Coordinación de familias y comunidades en conflictos ambientales, Región de la Araucanía
- Casa de arte Mapuche, Temuco.
- Agrupación Nguallen Pelu Mapu (Protectores de la Tierra), Los Sauces, IX Región.
- Xepeleai taiñ kimün, Comuna de Padre las Casas. IX Región.
- Organización Wajontu Coj Coj Mapu (Chol Chol)
- Agenda Regional de La Araucanía -AGRA
