Index:
   What is the TFAI
   Our Vision
   Proponents
   Advantages of an SFL
   Responsibilities of a Sustainable Forest Licensee
   TFAI  Environmental Health and Safety Policy

What is the TFAI

In October of 1994, members of Timiskaming's forest industry broke tradition when they put aside their competing interests on the land base and united to negotiate a New Business Relationship with the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (OMNR).  This new arrangement would see the development of a private forest management company that, on behalf of its members (the Shareholders), would assume forest management responsibilities for the former Crown managed forests within the Kirkland Lake Administrative District. 

Before the SFL was even officially in place, TFAI assumed responsibilities for forest management planning, forest renewal and maintenance, forest resource inventory collection and maintenance, and operational compliance monitoring and reporting in July of 1996.  In good faith and in cooperation with OMNR, TFAI maintained the unofficial role as forest manager of the Timiskaming Forest until the formal issuance of the SFL on April 1^st, 1998.

Our Vision

An alliance of forest based companies striving to maximize benefits to the community by ensuring the future of the forest and their respective businesses.  To read our full vision statement, see Our Vision

Proponents

Six of the shareholders of TFAI are best described as the mill-owning members. Collectively, these are the Shareholders who are specifically responsible for funding the operations of the Company. Individual financial obligations are prorated between those Shareholders, as determined by the respective amounts of timber they receive from the forest at their facilities. The TFAI Board of Directors, acting as a management committee on behalf of the Shareholders, determines the broad, strategic direction of the Company. There is one Director for each mill-owning Shareholder. An additional Director who represents all of the other Shareholders who are not aligned to any particular mill is elected by the independent forest operators to represent them on an annual basis.

One of the primary principles adopted by this group of traditional competitors in a cooperative environment was that the actual mechanism for decision making by the Board must ensure that "reason would always prevail". Decisions, which are rendered by the Board, are effective when two thirds of the number of Directors vote in favour of that decision, and those Directors also represent members who in total utilize at least 51% of the harvested forest resources. On a day-to-day basis, this formula ensures that out of the seven Directors, the largest three Shareholders can't control the decision-making process and the smallest three can't stall the process.

Advantages of an SFL

One of the benefits of an SFL is that the license guarantees that funding for renewal activities are secured.  The funding comes from a Forest Renewal Trust Fund that is entirely financed by the local forest industry.  For each cubic metre (or cord) that is harvested the Company must deposit enough money into the Trust Fund to ensure the effective renewal of the forest.  The advantage of this type of funding mechanism is that the renewal of the forest is not funded through your tax dollars and therefore is not subject to government cutbacks or redirection.  These funds are dedicated for the sole purpose of renewing the forest from where the trees were harvested.  Under a Sustainable Forest Licence, forest renewal activities increase to the levels required to sustain the harvest and properly regenerate and manage the forest.

The SFL also provides other advantages to the people of Ontario. The licensing arrangement allows the OMNR to focus on managing information and providing direction on how Ontario's forests will be utilized. The government supports, rather than directly implements the delivery of management planning and forest renewal activities and in turn has been able to reduce operating costs while enhancing their ability to focus on forest policy development and forest compliance activities.

For the forest industry, the main advantage of operating and managing the forest under this form of license is long-term tenure. With long-term tenure comes increased bank borrowing power and greater investment potential. While the costs to the local forest industry members has increased substantially with the creation of the Timiskaming Forest Alliance, and the subsequent issuance of the SFL, it is hoped that these costs can be somewhat offset through the better utilization of Company resources (people and equipment) and the integration of access, harvest and renewal activities, through the Company's involvement in the planning process.

Responsibilities of a Sustainable Forest Licensee

Timiskaming Forest Alliance Inc. is responsible for the development and preparation of a 20-year strategic Forest Management Plan (FMP) for the Timiskaming Forest. In addition to outlining the strategic forest management direction, this document also contains an operational plan that details the road construction, harvesting, forest renewal and forest tending activities for the first five years of the planning horizon. FMP's must follow all Provincial laws, regulations and operating guidelines. These plans are developed by a multi-disciplinary planning team consisting of TFAI and OMNR members as well as First Nation representatives and membership from the Local Citizen's Committee. During the FMP development process formal consultation opportunities for the public, First Nations, a local citizens committee and other identified stakeholders. Final approval of all FMP's rests with the MNR.

Timiskaming Forest Alliance Inc. is also responsible for preparing the Annual Work Schedule (AWS) for Timiskaming Forest. The AWS outlines all forest management activities that are scheduled for the current operating season. Note that this document is not a plan in itself, but a document that shows where previously planned and approved FMP activities will occur for the one-year period. Activities include road construction & maintenance, harvesting, site preparation, tree planting, tending, etc. At the end of each year, the Company is responsible for preparing and submitting annual reports to the MNR, on all activities that were carried out in the forest. These reports are available for public review at the local District MNR office.

In addition to planning the silvicultural activities that are required to renew the forest, the Company is operationally responsible for carrying out the successful renewal of the forest. These activities involve everything from careful logging techniques to tree planting and forest tending. In some instances, the member companies of TFAI utilize their own employees and equipment to do the work. However in most cases the work is contracted out to local service providers. All member companies have a vested interest in the successful regeneration of the areas that they harvest. By adhering to the prescribed harvest plan, Shareholder companies change their harvest technique to both to reduce the cost of regeneration and improve the overall effectiveness of the renewal efforts. This is now easier to coordinate since, from harvest through to renewal, TFAI is responsible for the entire cycle of forest management activities. In the past there was little opportunity to capitalize on the efficiencies of integrating timber harvesting and forest renewal activities. Due to this operational efficiency, areas are being prepared for replanting as they are being harvested and are often planted within months. In 2001 TFAI planted 8,000,000 trees, which is the culmination of a steady increase in treeplanting efforts, even though the amount of harvested area has not increased. That is up from the 1,900,000 trees that the MNR was planting annually before transferring that role to the SFL. In keeping with the TFAI's policy to support the local economy, seedlings are grown, nurtured and purchased locally through four nurseries located here on the Timiskaming Forest land base and one other nursery in Timmins::

In addition to growing the seedlings locally, the trees are planted and tended by 3 local reforestation contractors:

This represents a significant change in past practices where tree seedlings may have been grown out of province and then were planted by contractors situated in southern Ontario .  TFAI and its shareholders are proud of their success in supporting local suppliers.  A good news story to be sure!

Timiskaming Forest Alliance Inc. has implemented a comprehensive self-compliance program to monitor all activities undertaken by the Company and its Shareholders. On a day to day basis, TFAI recognizes that a sound self-compliance program is an essential component of a sustainable forest management system, and has therefore dedicated staff to ensure its delivery. The Company conducts pre-harvest assessments to verify that planned silvicultural prescriptions are appropriate and effective. Regular inspections take place to ensure that all operations comply with TFAI / OMNR standards and requirements. Follow-up regeneration assessments are carried out to ensure all areas have been successfully regenerated. With responsibility comes accountability, so where a standard is not achieved, it is the Company's responsibility to correct the situation at its own expense.

In the six years following the transfer of forest management responsibilities to TFAI, the OMNR's own policing presence in the forest has increased dramatically. Coincidental with TFAI's self-compliance program, operations are also monitored and audited by MNR staff on a regular basis. Forest operations have never been more scrutinized. Ultimately, however, it is the Company's responsibility to ensure that all operations comply with the conditions of the licence. Every five years, TFAI undergoes a formal, independent forest audit of the Company's activities. Results of these independent assessments are reported back the MNR and the public and are tabled in the Provincial Legislature. Audit reports provide an independent report to the citizens of Ontario on how well their public forests are being managed.

TFAI continues to develop and improve on its forest management practices. "Corporate Commitment to Forest Sustainability" is the foundation that these practices are built on. The intent of the self-compliance program for the Timiskaming Forest is to continually develop TFAI and Shareholder work practices that achieve higher than required standards. TFAI is a true forest industry cooperative whereby traditional economic competitors have put aside history in favour of a mutually beneficial partnership. The first primary principle adopted by the Shareholders was that "each member should be accountable for the discrepancies of their partners", who, in this case, are also their competitors. The Companies overall performance is assessed based on the "weakest link in the chain". Since no Shareholder normally aspires to being the lowest standard by which all others are measured, continuous improvement has become a self-driven mechanism.

For the TFAI  ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH AND SAFETY POLICY, click HERE