By Graeme Wild, CEO of Sappi Southern Africa After many years in forestry and the bioeconomy, I have come to believe that we sometimes make the relationship between people and trees seem shallower than it…
South Africa’s commercial plantation forests are mostly FSC certified. That’s not a small thing. It represents a significant and ongoing investment by forest managers in responsible practice, and it’s reflected in the cost of the…
Pine plantation Recent high-resolution climate modelling research has revealed that the suitability of key pine species for plantation forestry will shift dramatically by 2060. The lead author, Dr Jaco-Pierre van der Merwe of York Timbers,…
Wits University and Sappi Southern Africa have renewed their research partnership to increase forestry resilience to climate change risks by extending the Wits Sappi Chair in Climate Change and Plantation Sustainability until 2028. The new…
The bark, leaves, and roots of indigenous tree species in Africa form the backbone of traditional medicine, providing remedies passed down through generations. However, indiscriminate harvesting is threatening ecosystems and the livelihoods of millions of…
The Great Southern BioBlitz is an opportunity for all Southern Hemisphere countries to record organisms during Spring and showcase our beautiful biodiversity to the world. The Great Southern BioBlitz: 20 – 23 September 2024. Participants in…
Prof Mary Scholes and her team at the Sappi Chair in Climate Change and Plantation Sustainability at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) are pioneering research and capacity-building initiatives to equip the forestry industry to…
A new study reveals compelling evidence that forests certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) in Gabon and the Republic of Congo have more larger mammals and critically endangered species, such as gorillas and elephants,…
FSC forest management certification is back on the cards for Zimbabwe after taking a backseat for almost 15 years, largely due to severe economic challenges, such as hyperinflation, high interest rates, an unstable exchange rate,…
The days of applying pesticides to kill organisms destroying a newly planted crop, and inadvertently impacting the health of people, animals, soils and waterways are gone. In its place is a bewildering cliff of legislation,…
With total funding of nearly R20 million over five years (2024 – 2028), researchers at the Hans Merensky Chair in Advanced Modelling of Eucalypt Growth and Wood Formation (EucXylo) at Stellenbosch University (SU) are well…
The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) says this year’s UN International Day of Forests theme, “Forests and innovation: New solutions for a better world”, is highly pertinent. The FSC’s Africa certification manager, Nano Darko, and policy…
For foresters and farmers, the change of season is a clock with its hands constantly moving onto the next operation that needs to be completed before winter is in full swing. The shift from moist…
The climate crisis and biodiversity loss are intertwined crises that demand urgent attention. The temperature rise signifies more than just a number – it’s the line between manageable challenges and catastrophe. The FSC says it’s…
Jane Molony says misinformation about paper and its impact on our planet is increasing. The nay-sayers ignore the science-based facts that sustainably grown trees act as carbon sinks and farmed wood is a renewable resource.…
Scientists at the University of British Columbia (UBC) BioProducts Institute found that if you add tannins to a layer of wood dust, you can create a filter that traps virtually all microplastic particles in water.…
The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) commissioned IPSOS to conduct one of the world’s most extensive consumer studies, surveying 26,800 consumers across 33 countries. The FSC survey provides new insights into consumers’ concerns, who they trust,…
Legislation requires South Africa’s forestry and sawmill companies to report GHG emissions and carbon sequestration. However, sawmills and other carbon tax-paying processors can’t offset emissions against the carbon stored in their products unless they own…
Verra, a world leading standards setter for climate action and sustainable development, made public for the first time the updated draft methodology for reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in developing countries (REDD). It…
The Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market (ICVCM) has released new assessment criteria for carbon credits. The criteria establish clear quality thresholds to inspire greater confidence in the carbon markets and their contributions to…
Bernhard Lembeck is a former German petro-chemical paint chemist who became obsessed with making natural wood coatings. Along the way he became known as “the green chemist”. WoodBiz Africa caught up with Bernhard and Sandra…
The Northern Hemisphere is experiencing its hottest summer in recorded history. In Sub-Sahara Africa, tree growers await extreme summer conditions with the arrival of El Niño. In West Africa, a Ghanaian company, FORM Ghana, is…
Sappi Southern Africa and the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) announced the launch of the Sappi Chair in Climate Change and Plantation Sustainability headed by Prof Mary Scholes. The intervention will advance the capacity to…
The value of forestry in a greening economy’ is the Focus on Forestry conference & expo theme at the Karkloof Country Club in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands from 7-9 November 2023. The conference is organised by…
South Africa has deployed 400 firefighters and 28 managers to Canada to combat what officials believe to be the worst wildfires in Canadian history. The first group of 200 left on 3 June and the…
Minister Barbara Creecy says Carbon Budget regulations are being developed to address the submission and processing of industry climate change mitigation plans. She says the country must battle both loadshedding and climate change. “It is…
South Africa’s exporters, supported by policymakers, need to start planning to retain their competitiveness and market position in the face of the new reality of trade with the European Union’s wide-ranging climate policy. You can…
A group of 14 European Union trade associations of suppliers of wood and fibre-based products, and renewable energy solutions, supported by six EU associations of forest owners and managers, has launched the Cross-sectoral Coalition for…
The Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) has validated Deere & Company’s emissions reduction targets through an independent assessment. It determined that John Deere’s targets are consistent with what’s required to keep global warming to 1.5°C. You can…
The FX Group started 2023 with a decidedly bullish outlook on the back of switching on the biomass electricity plant at its Lothair particleboard factory. The investment produces the first “green power” boards while supporting…
Large-scale industrial solar panel installations provide tremendous cost-cutting benefits for sawmills, wood processing plants, and furniture manufacturers. There is no better time than now to capitalise on solar technologies. Running a sustainable business is challenging…
Globally, increasingly competitive renewables-based generation, especially solar and wind, are rapidly transforming power systems as countries try to meet the deadline for Net Zero levels by 2030. In South Africa, the motivation to get off…
The Mpumalanga Green Cluster Agency says South Africa ranks as one of the top 15 nations in the world in driving the green growth agenda – ahead of Australia, Singapore, and Finland. The agency attributes…
Rolling out Cape Town’s Tree Canopy Management Project to other cities and towns could be a valuable tool in coordinating urban tree-planting initiatives under the government’s Plant a Million Trees Campaign and managing risks at…
