Canada managing her forests well

I am writing on behalf of the Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC) regarding the article titled "Save paper, forests and Mother Earth" published on March 5, 2009 on ChinaDaily.com

I commend you for drawing your readers' attention to the importance of reducing paper consumption, and the link between consumption volumes and natural resource scarcity.

In a world where population growth is expected to reach 9 billion by 2050, it is becoming more and more imperative that consumers and industry do more to combat climate change through responsible consumption practices.

And Canada's forest products industry is doing its part, having reduced green house gas emissions by 57 percent - 10 times below 1990 Kyoto targets - pursing carbon neutrality through the supply chain, and reducing fossil fuel reliance through the use of wood waste biomass energy which currently comprises 60 percent of our energy needs.

However, in your article you incorrectly suggested that Canada's natural forests are shrinking, in fact Canada retains almost 90 percent of her original forest cover, and has a rate of deforestation of virtually zero as reported in the 2007 World Resource Institute report.

It is for this reason why Canada's forest industry is seen as a global leader in sustainable forest management practices. Canada's forest industry harvests legally, regenerates harvested areas by law, is committed to legal logging and the enforcement of tough regulations, welcomes outside scrutiny of our practices, participates in recovery and recycling, and promotes carbon neutrality across the supply chain.

These stringent practices ensure that Canada's natural forests are managed with environmental, social and economic responsibility in mind.

We pride ourselves on our products and services and know that the world looks to Canada for how to responsibly manage natural forests and meet for growing demand for environmentally sound and safe products. Because of our sustainable forestry practices, and our commitment to environmentally superior products, we know that we can meet the demands of tomorrow's responsible consumer without sacrificing forest cover or our efforts to combat climate change through our commitments.

Monica Bailey

Manager, External Relations Forest Products Association of Canada

Dirty washing an attraction

Shanghai "drying clothes in the open" has been mentioned twice in China Daily's recent editions. I refer to Chen Weihua (Feb 21) and Raymond Zhou (Feb 23). Before it's too late, I would like to join with them to say that this practice is famous in Shanghai but not infamous. This is something typical that belongs to Shanghai, and is worth preserving. In 1994, I was invited to a Shanghai restaurant by local friends. While waiting for our dishes, I excused myself and went outside to take some photographs of clothes drying on bamboo poles over the street.

When I came back, my Chinese friends said: "We are sorry for that ugly image of our city. This must disappear." I protested, and I explained to them that this is a special and unique image of Shanghai, and that they could exploit it as a tourist attraction.I sincerely hope visitors from all around the globe who will visit the 2010 Exhibition in Shanghai will still have the chance to enjoy this distinctive and characteristic aspect of Shanghai.

Lisa Carducci

Beijing

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(China Daily 03/10/2009 page10)