At the largest industrial employer in Cape Breton, success is not only measured in the number of well-paid jobs, but in its ability to be a sustainable and long-term business. Corporate social responsibility is more than an aspiration; it’s an economic necessity. 

That is why Port Hawkesbury Paper is transitioning its Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) Maritime certification to the new FSC national standard for responsible forest management in Canada. This new standard addresses the most pressing issues now facing forest management, including species at risk, Indigenous Peoples’ rights, workers’ rights and employment conditions, gender equity, and landscape management and conservation.

Port Hawkesbury Paper is also embarking on a project to supplement its energy requirements with a 112-megawatt wind farm, starting with two meteorological towers that will verify the wind resource at the project site over the next 12 months.

Bevan Lock, one of PHP’s co-mill managers, states: “We’ve developed substantial and transparent woodlands and forestry policies that adhere to sustainable management principles. Our employees live, work and recreate in the area, and have a vested interest in the sustainability of the mill and of the natural resources that surround us.”

These commitments are nothing new to Port Hawkesbury Paper, one of North America’s leaders in supercalendered paper manufacturing which directly and indirectly employs over 1,000 Nova Scotians. It is the only large industrial forest company in the Maritimes that is independently certified to the Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) forest management and chain of custody standards, Sustainable Forestry Initiative® (SFI®) forest management and chain of custody standards, and Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification™ (PEFC™) chain of custody standard.

“Open communication and problem-solving with our community, employees, suppliers, and customers ensure long-term sustainability and natural biodiversity for many ecological, social and cultural values,” Lock says, adding: “We are building relationships for energy management, forest management and business development to position us as a sustainable business for the future.”

By every definition, that’s just good business for everyone. •