West Fraser Mills Ltd. B.C. and Alberta Woodlands 2017

Transcription

1 West Fraser Mills Ltd. B.C. and Alberta Woodlands 2017 Between February and September 2017 an audit team from KPMG Performance Registrar Inc. ( KPMG or KPMG PRI ) carried out a surveillance audit of West Fraser Mills Ltd. (West Fraser) s B.C. and Alberta Woodlands Operations and associated production facilities against the requirements of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) forest management and fiber sourcing standards. To provide for a more efficient audit, PEFC and FSC chain of custody audits were conducted at the same time. This Certification Summary Report provides an overview of the process and KPMG s findings regarding the Company s conformance with the SFI forest management and fiber sourcing standards. SFI Forest Management and Fiber Sourcing Certifications All of West Fraser s B.C. and Alberta Woodlands Operations are included within the scope of multi-site SFI forest management and fiber sourcing certificates issued by KPMG PRI. The Company s current SFI certifications are valid until August 12, West Fraser s B.C. and Alberta Woodlands Operations The area included within the scope of the Company s ISO and SFI forest management certification includes the following 12 West Fraser Woodlands Operations: 100 Mile Woodlands Alberta Plywood Woodlands Blue Ridge Lumber Woodlands Chetwynd Forest Industries Woodlands Fraser Lake Woodlands High Prairie Forest Products Woodlands Hinton Wood Products Woodlands Manning Forest Products (MFP) Woodlands Pacific Inland Resources Woodlands Quesnel Woodlands Sundre Woodlands Williams Lake Woodlands The above West Fraser woodlands operations currently cover a total of approximately 8.5 million hectares (gross area), and provide the Company with a combined allowable annual cut (AAC) of 13.9 million m 3 per year. The audit found that Company continues to conform to the AACs applicable to these operations (for 2016 the actual harvest level from company tenures was 10.3 million m 3 ). West Fraser s B.C. and Alberta Woodlands operations are all covered by a corporate sustainable forest management (SFM) plan that addresses the Objectives of the SFI forest management standard and includes a variety of targets in relation to them. In addition, government-approved forest stewardship plans (for all B.C. Woodlands) and forest management plans (for all Alberta woodlands) that address both timber and nontimber values are also in place. In addition, various higher level plans developed by government (e.g., Land and Resource Management Plans, etc.) also provide direction to forest management within the areas managed by the Company. #0746 The Company s B.C. and Alberta woodlands operations fall within the following World Wildlife Fund (WWF) ecoregions: (1) Fraser Plateau and Basin Complex, (2) North Central Rockies Forest, (3) Cascade Mountains Leeward Forest, (4) Central British Columbia Mountain Forests, (5) Okanagan Dry Forests, (6) Alberta-British Columbia Foothills Forests, (7) Alberta Mountain Forests, (8) Canadian Aspen Forests and Parklands, (9) Mid-Continental Canadian Forests, and (10) Northern Cordillera Forests. The above ecoregions also represent the area of B.C. and Alberta from which the Company procures fibre from third parties to supplement supplies harvested from its own woodlands operations. The forests managed by the Company are dominated by the following commercial tree species: Pinus contorta var. latifolia (Lodgepole pine), Picea glauca (White spruce and

2 Findings West Fraser Mills Ltd. B.C. and Alberta Woodlands 2017 Page 2 hybrids), Picea engelmannii (Engleman spruce and hybrids), Picea mariana (Black spruce), Pseudotsuga menziesii (Interior Douglas-fir), Abies balsamea (Balsam Fir), Abies lasiocarpa (Sub-alpine fir), Populus tremuloides (Trembling aspen), Populus balsamifera (Balsam poplar), Betula papyrifera (Paper birch). The forest management approach employed by the Company at its B.C. and Alberta woodlands operations is based on even-aged management, ground-based and/or cable harvesting systems, clearcut harvesting with the retention of reserves of standing trees either within or adjacent to harvest areas, replanting of harvest areas within a few years with a mix of ecologically suited tree species and control of competing vegetation through the use of government-approved chemical herbicides (only some woodlands operations) and/or mechanical means. Controls are in place to help reduce reliance on chemical brush control where feasible to do so. West Fraser s B.C. and Alberta Woodlands Manufacturing Facilities The mills included within the scope of the Company s SFI fibre sourcing certification includes the following West Fraser manufacturing facilities: 100 Mile Lumber sawmill Alberta Plywood veneer plant Blue Ridge Lumber sawmill Chasm sawmill Chetwynd Forest Industries sawmill Edson Forest Products sawmill Fraser Lake sawmill High Prairie sawmill Hinton Wood Products sawmill Manning Forest Products sawmill Pacific Inland Resources sawmill Quesnel sawmill and plywood mill Slave Lake pulpmill Sundre Forest Products sawmill West Fraser LVL mill Williams Lake sawmill and plywood mill The Company s fiber sourcing needs vary considerably between facilities. While the majority of fiber is sourced directly from the Company s own woodlands, approximately one-third (4.0 million m 3 in 2017) is purchased from third parties, a small portion of which is purchased stumpage that is logged by West Fraser contractors under the Company s environmental management system (EMS). West Fraser participates in the Western Canada SFI Implementation Committee (WCSIC) Purchase Wood Monitoring Program by completing risk assessments for all wood purchases and purchase wood inspections as necessary. The results are collated by the WCSIC in order to identify opportunities for improvement. The large majority of wood purchases are from other organizations (forest companies and B.C. Timber Sales) who hold their own SFM certifications, with a small percentage coming from uncertified private land and oilfield salvage operations. West Fraser Mills Ltd. B.C. and Alberta Woodlands 2017 SFI Surveillance Audit Findings Open non-conformities from previous audits New major nonconformities New minor nonconformities New opportunities for improvement Types of audit findings Major non-conformities: Are pervasive or critical to the achievement of the SFM Objectives. Minor non-conformities: Are isolated incidents that are non-critical to the achievement of SFM Objectives. All non-conformities require the development of a corrective action plan within 30 days of the audit. Corrective action plans to address major nonconformities must be fully implemented by the operation within 3 months or certification cannot be achieved / maintained. Corrective action plans to address minor non-conformities must be fully implemented within 12 months. Major non-conformities must be addressed immediately or certification cannot be achieved / maintained. Opportunities for Improvement: Are not non-conformities but are comments on specific areas of the SFM System where improvements can be made

3 Findings West Fraser Mills Ltd. B.C. and Alberta Woodlands 2017 Page 3 Audit Scope The SFI portion of the audit entailed a limited scope assessment against the requirements associated with the following SFI forest management and fibre sourcing objectives: Forest management planning; Conservation of biological diversity; Protection of special sites; Recognize and respect Indigenous Peoples rights; Adherence to best management practices; Use of qualified resource professionals and qualified logging professionals; Legal and regulatory compliance; Public land management responsibilities; Communications and public reporting, and; Management review and continual improvement. The Audit Audit Team The audit was conducted by Dave Bebb, RPF, EP(EMSLA), Branden Beatty, RPBio, Yurgen Menninga, RPF, EP(EMSLA), Mike Alexander, RPF, EP (EMSLA), Del Ferguson, PGeo, EP(EMSLA) and Bodo von Schilling, RPF, EP (EMSLA). Members of the audit team have conducted numerous forest management audits under a variety of standards including SFI, ISO 14001, CSA Z809 and FSC. SFI Surveillance Audit The audit involved an on-site assessment of the West Fraser B.C. and Alberta Woodlands Operation s EMS and SFI program. Site visits were made to a total of 5 out of 12 woodlands divisions (Williams Lake, Blue Ridge, Fraser Lake, Chetwynd and Sundre) as well as the Company s Quesnel, B.C. Corporate Office. This sample size is consistent with IAF requirements regarding audit sampling for multi-site certifications. The audit involved a review of selected EMS and SFI records, interviews with a sample of staff, contractors and regulatory agency personnel and visits to a sample of field sites (46 roads, 30 cutblocks, 19 silviculture sites, 1 camp and 11 wood procurement sites) to evaluate SFM system implementation and effectiveness. The SFI portion of the 2017 West Fraser audit took approximately 45 auditor days to complete, 32 days of which were spent onsite. The balance of audit time was spent preparing the audit plan, conducting an off -site review of selected Company documents, completing various audit checklists and preparing the main and public summary audit reports. West Fraser s SFI Program Representative Stephen Vinnedge, RPF (West Fraser s Stewardship Forester and Corporate EMS Coordinator) served as the Company s SFI program representative during the audit. West Fraser operates 47 mills across Western Canada and the southern United States. In addition, the Company manages 12 woodlands operations located in the provinces of BC and Alberta. These woodlands operations (and the fibre sourcing programs for the associated West Fraser mills) are the subject of the SFI forest management and fibre sourcing certificates issued by KPMG PRI.

4 Findings West Fraser Mills Ltd. B.C. and Alberta Woodlands 2017 Page 4 Audit Objectives The objectives of the audit were to evaluate the SFM system at West Fraser s B.C. and Alberta woodlands operations to: Determine its conformance with the requirements of the SFI forest management and fibre sourcing standards; Evaluate the ability of the system to ensure that the Company meets applicable regulatory requirements; Evaluate the effectiveness of the system in ensuring that West Fraser Mills Ltd. meets its specified SFM objectives, and; Where applicable, identify opportunities for improvement. Audit Conclusions The audit found that West Fraser Mills Ltd. B.C. and Alberta Woodland s SFM system: Was in conformance with the requirements of the SFI standards included within the scope of the audit, except where noted otherwise in this report; Continues to be effectively implemented, except to the extent that non-conformities have been identified during the current audit or in previous audits if they have yet to be adequately addressed, and; Is sufficient to systematically meet applicable requirements and expected outcomes, provided that the system continues to be implemented and maintained as required. As a result, a decision was reached by the lead auditor to recommend that West Fraser Mills Ltd. B.C. and Alberta Woodlands continue to be certified to the SFI forest management and fibre sourcing standards. Evidence of Conformity with SFI Standards Primary sources of evidence assessed to determine conformity with the SFI forest management and fiber sourcing standards are presented in Table 1 below. The audit involved a review of selected EMS and SFI records, interviews with a sample of staff and contractors and visits to field sites (46 roads, 30 cutblocks, 19 silviculture sites, 1 camp and 11 wood procurement sites) to evaluate SFM system implementation and the adequacy of forest management plans and practices. SFI Forest Management Objective Sources of Key Evidence of Conformity 1. Forest Management Planning SFM plan, Forest Stewardship Plans (FSPs), Detailed Forest Management Plans (DFMPs), General Development Plans (GDPs), Annual Operating Plans (AOPs), Timber Supply Review (TSR) AAC Rationales, Geographic Information System (GIS), review of site plans, harvesting records interviews with a sample of staff and contractors, field inspections. 2. Forest Health and Productivity 3. Protection and Maintenance of Water Resources 4. Conservation of Biological Diversity SFM plan, FSPs, DFMPs, staff interviews, divisional operational controls, review of wildlife and biodiversity information and strategies contained in divisional GIS, site plans, field inspections.

5 Findings West Fraser Mills Ltd. B.C. and Alberta Woodlands 2017 Page 5 SFI Forest Management Objective 5. Management of Visual Quality and Recreational Benefits Sources of Key Evidence of Conformity 6. Protection of Special Sites SFM plan, FSPs, DFMPs, staff interviews, review of site plans and stakeholder consultation records, field inspections. 7. Efficient Use of Fibre Resources 8. Recognize and Respect Indigenous Peoples Rights 9. Legal and Regulatory Compliance 10. Forestry Research, Science & Technology Company policy on Indigenous Peoples rights, records of consultation with local Indigenous Peoples, pre-audit questionnaire responses, staff interviews. SFM plan, corporate environmental, social and health & safety policies, Corporate Stewardship Report, management review records, non-compliance records, field inspections, interviews with regulatory agency personnel. The main product of the Company s Western Canadian sawmills is spruce/ pine/fir ( SPF ) lumber. West Fraser also produces panels (plywood, MDF and LVL), pulp (NBSK and BCTMP), energy and wood chips. 11. Training and Education 12. Community Involvement and Landowner Outreach 13. Public Land Management Responsibilities 14. Communications and Public Reporting 15. Management Review and Continual Improvement FSPs, DFMPs, GDPs, AOPs and stakeholder referral correspondence, site plans and selected stakeholder consultation records, staff interviews, field inspections. SFM plan, management reviews, internal audit reports and associated action plans, divisional EMPs, staff interviews. SFI Fibre Sourcing Objective Sources of Key Evidence of Conformity 1. Biodiversity in Fibre Sourcing 2. Adherence to Best Management Practices 3. Use of Qualified Resource and Logging Professionals Fibre sourcing policy and records of its distribution to wood producers, written fibre sourcing agreements, records of implementation of the Best Management Practices (BMPs) monitoring system, inspection of a sample of procurement sites. List of Qualified Resource and Logging Professionals, records of proportion of fibre delivered by Qualified Logging Professionals (QLPs), interviews with procurement staff.

6 Findings West Fraser Mills Ltd. B.C. and Alberta Woodlands 2017 Page 6 SFI Fibre Sourcing Objective 4. Legal and Regulatory Compliance 5. Forestry Research, Science & Technology Sources of Key Evidence of Conformity SFM plan, corporate environmental, social and health & safety policies, Corporate Stewardship Report, corporate and divisional management review records, noncompliance records, inspection of a sample of procurement sites, interviews with regulatory agency personnel. 6. Training and education 7. Community Involvement and Landowner Outreach 8. Public Land Management Responsibilities 9. Communications and Public Reporting 10. Management Review and Continual Improvement 11. Promote Conservation of Biological Diversity, Biodiversity Hotspots and High-Biodiversity Wilderness Areas 12. Avoidance of Controversial Sources including Illegal Logging 13. Avoidance of Controversial Sources including Sources without Effective Social Laws Records of cooperative public land planning processes, plan referrals to local stakeholders, staff interviews. (MFP only) SFM plan, management review records, internal audit reports and associated action plans, interviews with a sample of corporate and divisional procurement staff. Controversial sources risk assessment, procedures to address any significant risks that have been identified, interviews with procurement staff. Although the mountain pine beetle (MPB) epidemic in BC has largely run its course, a significant (but diminishing) proportion of the timber harvest at many of the Company s B.C. woodlands operations continues to come from pine stands that have been impacted by the MPB. Follow-up on Findings from Previous Audits At the time of this assessment there were a total of 4 open minor non-conformities from previous external SFI audits. The audit team reviewed the status of the action plans that were developed by the Company to address these audit findings and concluded that they: (1) had been implemented as required, and (2) were effective in addressing the root cause(s) of these non-conformities. As a result, all of the previously identified minor non-conformities have now been closed. Good Practices A number of good practices were identified during the course of the 2017 audit. Examples included: SFI Forest Management Objective 1: The Sundre operation maintains a green page (which is a hyper-linked PDF on the operation s local network drive) that provides staff will ready access to the most current versions of the various forest management plans developed for operation (e.g. AOPs, Final Harvest Plans (FHPs), etc.). (Sundre)

7 Findings West Fraser Mills Ltd. B.C. and Alberta Woodlands 2017 Page 7 SFI Forest Management Objective 1: A new joint FSP is being prepared by the major licensees in the Chetwynd TSA (including West Fraser, Canfor, BCTS and Louisiana Pacific). The joint FSP is expected to lead to joint planning projects with other licensees in a similar way to the Fort St. John Pilot Project. (Chetwynd) SFI Forest Management Objective 2: Review of the Reforestation Standard of Alberta (RSA) results contained in the 2016 West Fraser forest stewardship report found that the Sundre operation is surpassing the coniferous mean annual increment (MAI) target for regenerating stands by a considerable margin (i.e., an actual area-weighted conifer MAI of 2.78 m 3 /year versus a target of 1.97 m 3 /year). (Sundre) SFI Forest Management Objective 3: The Sundre watershed protection strategy, which provides for variable width on-block riparian buffers that are based on the actual size of riparian areas (which are not well correlated with channel width), provide for an enhanced level of protection of riparian areas associated with intermittent and ephemeral streams relative to the fixed-width riparian buffers specified in the Sundre Operating Ground Rules (OGRs). (Sundre) SFI Forest Management Objective 4: Inspection of a large (>400 hectare) MPB salvage block found that the Williams Lake operation had done a good job of addressing the BC Chief Forester s guidance regarding increased on-block retention for large salvage blocks. (Williams Lake) SFI Forest Management Objective 6: The West Fraser Chetwynd operation maintains a very robust program to identify and protect moderate to high archaeological potential sites through the use of the Peace Forest District Archaeological Potential Modeling and preliminary field reconnaissance process. (Chetwynd) SFI Forest Management Objective 9: The audit found that a number of West Fraser woodlands divisions now require their logging contractors to have GPS units in all bunchers as a means to help reduce the risk of harvest boundary trespass. (Williams Lake, Blue Ridge, etc.) SFI Forest Management Objective 9: Prior to beginning harvest on a block the Fraser Lake division conducts a Planning/Operations/Silviculture hand-off meeting where constraints, commitments and other notable conditions that apply to the block are reviewed and documented. (Fraser Lake) SFI Forest Management Objective 10: West Fraser continues to devote considerable resources to forest-related research. In 2016 the Company spent a total of $10,081,129 (from internal and external funding sources) on forest-related research versus an AAC of 13,960,165 m 3 /year, which equates to approximately $0.72/m 3 of AAC. (Corporate) SFI Fibre Sourcing Objective 2: West Fraser continues to complete a high proportion of all of the SFI fibre sourcing inspections conducted by program participants in BC and Alberta (283/617 of all inspections completed in 2016 or approximately 46%). (Corporate) SFI Fibre Sourcing Objective 2: The audit found that the Williams Lake log buyer had conducted an inspection of a wood producer salvage logging site despite the purchase wood risk assessment indicating that an inspection was not required (the rationale given for conducting the inspection is that the wood producer is not a QLP and the logging was being conducted in an Old Growth Management Area (OGMA)). (Williams Lake) The large majority of the Company s harvest blocks are replanted within 2 years of the completion of harvest. Non-conformities The 2017 audit did not identify any non-conformities with the requirements of the SFI forest management or fibre sourcing standards that were included within the scope of the audit.

8 Findings West Fraser Mills Ltd. B.C. and Alberta Woodlands 2017 Page 8 Opportunities for improvement The following 6 opportunities for improvement were identified during the audit in relation to the requirements of the SFI forest management and fiber sourcing standards: SFI Forest Management Objective 9: The audit noted a few isolated weaknesses in the implementation of the Company s EMS procedures (e.g., an equipment operator who did not have a copy of the required block or EMS booklet in his machine, a few incomplete spill kits on active sites, isolated examples of missing/discharged fire extinguishers or extinguishers that had not been inspected in the past 12 months and some divisional non-conformance records that lacked a clear distinction between incident investigation and root cause analysis). (Williams Lake, Chetwynd and Sundre). SFI Forest Management Objective 2: The audit noted an insolated instance where a previously harvested block had not been declared free growing within the prescribed timeframe. (Williams Lake). SFI Forest Management Objective 6: The audit noted an insolated instance where a cultural heritage resource that had been identified prior to logging had been protected in a wildlife tree patch but was not noted on the operational maps provided to equipment operators. (Fraser Lake) SFI Forest Management Objective 3: The audit noted 2 temporary log fill crossings on low gradient ephemeral/intermittent streams that had been constructed as a continuous mat of logs with few or no breaks, resulting in the impoundment of water. Although these crossings were scheduled for rehabilitation later in the year and there was little risk to downstream resources, these log fills could have been constructed in a way that would have allowed them to pass water more effectively. (Blue Ridge). SFI Forest Management Objective 15: The 2016 Fraser Lake divisional management review was completed approximately 1 month after the April 15, 2017 due date. (Fraser Lake) SFI Fibre Sourcing Objective 2: Although the Williams Lake operation provides wood producers with a copy of the standard West Fraser Wood Producer Information Package, there is a opportunity for the operation to also provide them with recently released guidelines for the management of dry belt Douglas-fir (which are intended to help avoid stand conversion to species other than Douglas-fir). (Williams Lake). Corrective Action Plans No non-conformities with the requirements of the SFI forest management or fibre sourcing standards were identified during the 2017 audit. As a result, there was no requirement for West Fraser to develop formal corrective action plans to address the findings of the audit. The roads inspected during the Sundre audit were found to be very well maintained. This was particularly apparent in the Falls, Gloomy, Pinto & Meadows compartments where due to the soil types present there is a higher risk of cut-slope failure and sediment input into waterbodies. Methods of erosion control observed include the use of coir logs (as shown in the picture below) in ditchlines and adjacent to fish streams, and rock works in ditchlines and around culvert intakes. Contacts: Chris Ridley-Thomas, RPBio, EP(EMSLA) (604) David Bebb, RPF, EP(EMSLA) (604) This report may only be reproduced by the intended client, West Fraser Mills Ltd. with the express consent of KPMG. Information in this issue is of a general nature with respect to audit findings and is not intended to be acted upon without appropriate professional advice KPMG. All rights reserved. Through KPMG PRI, KPMG s Vancouver based forestry group is accredited to register forest companies to ISO 14001, CSA-SFM, SFI and PEFC certification standards.