NASHVILLE, Tenn., June 15, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- The Sustainable Forestry Initiative® (SFI) announced today that LP Building Solutions (LP) is the recipient of the SFI President's Award for 2022. The award is given annually to an organization or individual that leads the forest community on important issues related to sustainability, education, and collaboration.
"LP exemplifies SFI's mission as an organization committed to forest-focused collaborations." - SFI CEO
Kathy AbusowSFI recognized LP for its longstanding leadership in sustainability and its admirable focus on the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors at the core of the company's values. LP has also demonstrated a commitment to building a diverse workforce, educating youth, and supporting the communities where its employees live and work.
The award was presented on June 14 at the 2022 SFI/Project Learning Tree annual conference in Madison, Wisconsin.
"LP exemplifies SFI's mission as an organization committed to forest-focused collaborations," said SFI President & CEO Kathy Abusow. "This award recognizes LP's efforts to advance sustainability across all four of SFI's pillars: Standards, Conservation, Community, and Education."
Celebrating its 50th anniversary, LP has grown to be a world leader in the production of strand-based exterior siding and structural panels for new construction, repair and remodeling, and other applications.
LP was an early adopter of SFI's Standards, receiving its first SFI certificate in 2000. Today, the company leases 13 million acres of SFI-certified land in Canada and has 25 manufacturing facilities in the U.S., Canada, and South America certified to the SFI Forest Management and Fiber Sourcing Standards (U.S. and Canada) and Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification Chain of Custody Standards (South America). LP uses the SFI label on more than 20 different products to leverage and promote the SFI brand to help tell its sustainability story.
SFI certification is central to advancing LP's climate leadership. LP recently completed its Scope 1, 2, and 3 greenhouse gas emissions inventories and released its first Task Force for Climate Related Financial Disclosures assessment, which communicates how LP evaluates and manages climate change risks and opportunities across its business and develops solutions to support a low-carbon energy transition.
"It is an incredible honor to receive the 2022 SFI President's Award," said LP Chair and CEO Brad Southern. "At LP, we proudly advocate to conserve and care for our planet. One of the most critical ways we do this is through sustainable forest management, which involves collaborating and partnering with our Indigenous communities, scientific research, rigorous planning, third-party standards, and public outreach and education. As an early adopter of forest certification standards—first certified to SFI over 20 years ago—we have long seen the value in partnering with third-party experts to ensure we take care of one of Earth's most critical renewable resources—our forests. For our work to be recognized by SFI, a leading authority on sustainable forestry, is truly humbling."
LP has participated in SFI-funded conservation projects that collaborate with conservation groups to continually improve and innovate its forestry practices. For example, LP was an active participant and leader in the SFI-funded project by Ducks Unlimited Canada, the Forest Roads and Wetland Project. The project worked on SFI-certified forest areas managed by LP to develop new road and crossing construction practices to ensure the integrity of water flow and quality through forested wetland systems, and to maintain and conserve wetlands and waterfowl habitats in West Central Manitoba. In addition, LP participated in an SFI-funded collaborative research project led by the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement to ensure that forest managers understand the nutritional needs of caribou and to help manage the landscape to provide those resources. Finally, as part of the Maine SFI Implementation Committee, LP participates in Maine Fisheries Improvement Network initiatives aimed at identifying and replacing defective culverts and other fish passages across the state. In all these ways and more, LP has demonstrated conservation leadership.
LP also supports youth education and, together with Project Learning Tree Canada, funds the Outland Youth Employment Program (OYEP), which supports Indigenous youth so they can gain career skills and basic forestry skills through camps designed to encourage a safe environment. In 2022, LP will host a camp program in the Duck Mountain Provincial Forest in Manitoba. Since 2018, Project Learning Tree Canada and SFI-certified organizations have contributed over $4.2 million CAD to OYEP.
As part of LP's community engagement, it is an active member of nine SFI Implementation Committees. One specific project involved LP collaborating on a community project to construct and install 70 bat boxes in St. Louis County, Minnesota. This project provided bat habitats needed to help combat white-nose syndrome, which is affecting many bat populations across the U.S. and Canada.
LP joins a distinguished group of people and organizations to win the SFI President's Award, including USDA Forest Service Chief Vicki Christiansen in 2021 and the Yakama Nation in 2019.
About LP Building Solutions
As a leader in high-performance building solutions, Louisiana-Pacific Corporation (LP Building Solutions, NYSE: LPX) manufactures engineered wood building products that meet the demands of builders, remodelers and homeowners worldwide. LP's extensive offerings include innovative and dependable building products and accessories, such as siding solutions (LP® SmartSide® Trim & Siding, LP® SmartSide® ExpertFinish® Trim & Siding, LP BuilderSeries® Lap Siding, and LP® Outdoor Building Solutions®), LP Structural Solutions (LP® TechShield® Radiant Barrier, LP WeatherLogic® Air & Water Barrier, LP Legacy® Premium Sub-Flooring, and LP® FlameBlock® Fire-Rated Sheathing, LP NovaCore™ Thermal Insulated Sheathing, and more), LP® TopNotch® Sub-Flooring, and oriented strand board (OSB). In addition to product solutions, LP provides industry-leading customer service and warranties. Since its founding in 1972, LP has been Building a Better World™ by helping customers construct beautiful, durable homes while our shareholders build lasting value. Headquartered in Nashville, Tennessee, LP operates 25 plants across the U.S., Canada, Chile, and Brazil. For more information, visit LPCorp.com.
About the Sustainable Forestry Initiative
SFI advances sustainability through forest-focused collaborations. We are an independent, non-profit organization that leverages four interconnected pillars of work: standards, conservation, community, and education. SFI works with the forest sector, conservation groups, academics, researchers, brand owners, resource professionals, landowners, educators, local communities, Indigenous Peoples, and governments. Collaborating with our network, we leverage SFI-certified forests and products as powerful tools to help solve sustainability challenges such as climate action, conservation of biodiversity, education of future generations, and sustainable economic development. Learn more at forests.org.
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SOURCE LP Building Solutions
Media Contacts: Sustainable Forestry Initiative, David Folkerson, 613-565-0627, media@forests.org; LP Building Solutions, Breeanna Straessle, 615-986-5886, Media.Relations@lpcorp.com
