Where From Here?

This Is Not Over

This topic lends itself to biased interviews, and un-returned calls.

I plan on continuing this research by calling Jody Spiller.

She is the head of the company that Verso has audit their logging sites

I’m going to ask…

1. How often are these logging sites audited?

2. What things are looked for during an audit?

3.What happens if the sites are found lacking?

Then…

I also plan on calling Ken, who is the head of sustainability at the mill in Jay Maine.

1. What were the practices of the company before it became ‘sustainable’?

2. How much does it cost to be sustainable?

3. How have the environmental impacts been changed since being declared sustainable?

Next….

How can we ensure the quality of water and the environment near mills such as the one in Jay, Maine?

 

 

What do you think? Please post your comments below!

Now What?

Now that we have seen the regulations and explored who might be responsible let me ask you:

• In what ways could these forests be better protected? 
• How could we as consumers encourage companies to care more about the environment?

Verso doesn’t seem to be directly responsible for any possible regulation breaking at logging sites. However, could they do more to make sure that the regulations aren’t broken? The verso representative had said that the larger companies were the ones that we needed to be concerned with.

But wait!

Fact 1: It took the company representative 2 weeks to call me back.

Fact 2: During the phone call it was hard to get any questions in. (Almost as if the representative had prepared a speech)

It is difficult to get the true story from a party that has biased. The representative has loyalty to his or her company, and therefore will have biased and not necessarily be truthful. So the question is?

How do we know when we are getting the truth, or if the truth we are getting has biased?

Lacey Act

The Lacey Act is an US Federal act that addresses the issues of illegal killing, selling, trading, and possession of mammals and birds. This act also addresses the issue illegal logging

The Lacey Act describes the penalties of illegal logging. 

These penalties are separated into two main categories:

Knowing

Unknowingly

Unknowingly committing the crime is then separated into two sub categories:

Unknowingly and unaware of the Lacey Act

Unknowingly and aware of the Lacey Act

Knowingly breaking the law (which is the purchase, trade or use of illegally logged timber) means that the company, or individual knew all the regulations, and purposely ignored regulations while logging and using the timber. The consequences for this crime is possible:

Up to 5 years in prison

Criminal felony fine

Forfeiture of goods

The first sub category is that the party committing the crime unknowingly did so, however, they did not take all needed precautions to make sure that the laws wouldn’t be broken in the process. The penalty for this infraction is:

A criminal misdemeanor

Up to 1 year prison sentence

Forfeiture of goods

The second sub category can be defined as whom ever broke the law did so unknowingly and had previously taken all needed precautions before the infraction. The consequence for this situation is:

Forfeiture of goods

OR

Civil Penalty

Now let me ask you a question:

Why would a company use or want to illegally harvest timber?

Would it be worth it?

My Theory:

Yes and no. If a company can prove that they were well versed in the Lacey Act and had taken all the proper precautions needed the worse they would be penalized with would be a forfeiture of goods that were made with the illegally sourced timber. In this economy it is important to be the ‘top seller’ and if getting timber cheaper, so the product would have a higher percent mark-up, why wouldn’t the company think about it?

This is more than just a local Maine issue. Illegal logging is a world wide issue.

Verso: Good Fight

Verso returned my call on 20-Feb-2015.

(Photo credit to www.oneims.net)

First let’s hear how Verso describes sustainability: 

(From notes with Neil Aldridge, Verso Headquarters TN.)

• It’s more than the environment, it’s the notion that we dwell in and live in this place, and we are responsible for the people in the community that we work, and owe it to them to make it a safe and clean place.

• Make life as good as it can be, and continue to improve quality of life for the community and the workers

Sounds good Verso, keep talking:

The consumer and customer:

• Focused on what we are using, and pulling our resources together to understand and minimize the financial impact, as well as the environmental impact

From a social point of view: The plan is to minimize the harm to the environment!

(Verso Paper Mill in Jay Maine, photo credit to fineartamerica.com)

Customers are concerned with the classic environmental aspects:

Air quality

Water

Solid Waste

Green house gases

 Verso’s Plan on Addressing these Issues:

• Plan on monitoring these aspects, and target these for improvement, and plan to all together improve the performance of the company.
• Maine has very sustainable forestry regulations where the forests need to be regenerated which helps cause minimal amount of harm.

Seem to be doing great Verso: Stay tuned for more.

Public Opinion vs Cooperate Opinion

What is the difference between being a ‘logger’ and being a ‘forester’?

Does one require art, and the other just a mindless job, how do they relate? I am interested in hearing what you think!

 

How is one different from the other, and which would be better for our environment?

 

Please cast your opinions in the comments below!!

( Photo credit to www.seiu721.org)

Laws, Laws, Everywhere Laws

The State regulations as of May 1 2014

Within five years of completing a timber harvest that creates a clear cut, the harvest area must be stocked with at least 450 trees per acre of acceptable growing stock trees. The harvest area may not contain any contiguous area larger than 5 acres that does not meet this condition

FOR MORE INFORMATION, please visit the site below. 

http://www.maine.gov/dacf/mfs/publications/rules_and_regs/chap_20_rules_05012014.pdf 

Some of the federal regulations are the National Environmental Policy Act enforced by the EPA, one policy has agencies create an Environmental Impact Statement which is submitted to the EPA.This statement takes in affect what the expected impacts on the environment will be through the given practices of the company.

When I tried to find them, it wasn’t a cut and dried type of list, it was complicated and I am sure are a lot of loop holes. For example an EIS doesn’t need to be filed IF an EA is filed? Tricky stuff.

The EA (Environmental Assesment) may document consideration of a no-action alternative through the effects analysis by contrasting the impacts of the proposed action and any alternative(s) with the current condition and expected future condition if the proposed action were not implemented.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, please click on the link below.

http://www.fs.fed.us/emc/nepa/nepa_procedures/index.htm

(In case top link isn’t active, search bottom title)

 01-669 Maine Forest Service Chapter 20 Forest Regeneration& Clearcutting Standards MAINE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, CONSERVATION, AND FORESTRY MAINE FOREST SERVICE May 1, 2014

Approaching the Companies (The fight Begins)

When trying to call Verso Company, each time I have called, it has gone straight to an answering machine, Hopefully I will contact them to ask them these questions…….

• What are some Federal regulations in place?
• What are some Local Regulations? (Specifically Maine)
• How much does it cost to keep the equipment and supplies up to regulation code?
• I have heard you have a sustainable practice, what are some practices that make it sustainable?
• How often are the sites inspected?
• Where are the cut sites?
• How many acres do you cut a year on average?
• How much profit comes in a year?
• What is a mill workers average yearly salary?