The Greenpeace investigation, entitled “Cut and Run:
Kimberly-Clark’s Legacy of Environmental Devastation and Social
Conflilct in the Kenogami Forest,” used government documents,
independent audits, public records and satellite mapping. It found
that K-C consumed hundreds of thousands of tons of tree fiber from
the Kenogami forest to make its disposable products, including
Kleenex tissues. K-C directly managed and logged the forest for
nearly 70 years, until it sold Kenogami operations in 2004. Since
K-C began logging there, 71 percent of the Kenogami has been
fragmented and woodland caribou have been driven from 67 percent of
the forest. If current logging rates continue, caribou are
expected to die off in 95 percent of the Kenogami in the next 20
years. A government taskforce classified over 80 percent of the
Kenogami of the forest as inadequately protected and 78 percent of
the forest as high priority for conservation.
“Kimberly-Clark has for years made claims of environmental
leadership, but our investigation shows those claims are untrue,”
said Rolf Skar, senior forest campaigner with Greenpeace. “The
ancient Kenogami forest remains one of K-C’s primary sources of
wood pulp. The irresponsible logging, driving out of threatened
wildlife and conflict with native communities in the Kenogami are a
badge of shame for Kimberly-Clark.”
Nine Canadian First Nations communities are involved in a legal
case against the Ontario provincial government and the companies
managing the Kenogami forest. The native communities seek to become
a part of the forest’s planning, management and economic benefits,
having treaty rights to these benefits which have regularly been
ignored. A member of a First Nations community dependent on the
Kenogami forest is attending the K-C annual general meeting to
share the plight of his people and the forest with
shareholders.
“Kimberly-Clark must increase the amount of recycled content in
its products, reducing pressure on forests like the Kenogami,”
added Skar. “By adopting policies that protect ancient forests and
getting prior and informed consent of First Nations communities
before logging, K-C can take a real step toward becoming an
industry leader in sustainability.”
A shareholder resolution sponsored by Harrington Investments to
create a board level sustainability committee also will be voted on
at the K-C annual general meeting. Greenpeace supports this
resolution to protect forests, safeguard communities and build
long-term solutions to Kimberly-Clark’s unsustainable wood fiber
use.
VVPR info: [email protected]
Notes: The full investigation is available at www.greenpeace.org/cutandrun
