b'BACK TO NAVIGATIONCERTIFICATIONBeware of Greenwashing!Certification systems allow consumers to influence forest management and other impacts of paper use by purchasingMany products are now being labelled as pre-certified products. Customers may however assume thatgreen even though they still have negative all certification standards are equivalent and that all certifiedenvironmental impact and this can be an issue forest products come from sustainably managed forests butfor paper. Almost all paper is recyclable, so unfortunately there are some differences that consumers should be aware of.paper labelled recyclable is not greener than standard paper. The most sustainable paper There are two common certifications available for forest productsshould be 100 percent recycled, have a high in Australia that are applied to copy paper:post-consumer waste content and not contain Forest Stewardship Council certification (FSC) andany native forest fibre. Ideally this paper would Australian Forestry Standard (AFS) - sometimes alsoalso be produced locally to avoid the impacts represented as PEAC of transport. Both certifications are underpinned by a process of standards, consultation, reporting, and auditing.Some paper companies also label their paper Both these certifications receive support and criticism bycarbon neutral as the carbon emissions in the different stakeholder groups and both are subject to commentaryproduction process have been measured and about how they balance the interests of commercial harvestingoffset.However,if the paper contains native verses environmental sustainability and communities. Manyforest fibre, simply leaving the native forest in point to contradictions where high value conservation forests arethe ground to absorb carbon would provide harvested for certified timber products or where other impactsgreater benefits.or failures of compliance systems have led to unsustainable outcomes.Australia also exports unprocessed wood chips The highest use of paper by law firms is 80 gsm copy paper. Theharvested from native Victorian and Tasmanian number of large paper mills in Australian has reduced over theeucalypt forests to Japan and China where last ten years as a result of international competition for products.it is made into paper products. Given that Australian Paper is now the only producer of copy paper inmuch of Australias copy paper is imported, Australia but produces paper for several labels and brands. Theircustomers need to be aware that they may be plant at Maryvale produces different copy paper products using both recycled and virgin pulp - using fifty-seven percent planationinadvertently supporting this practice.pulp in total. Australian Paper has also recently commissioned a recycling plant capable of significantly increasing the proportion of recycled copy paper it produces. Australian Paper is also the only Australian manufacturer of A4 copy paper that still uses native forest timber harvested by Vic Forests. This supply of native forest logs is certified by the industry backed Australian Forestry Standard but does not meet the additional requirements of Forestry Stewardship Council certification.57'