Our Green Statement
Welcome to our Green Statement page.
At Firth (UK) we take our environmental responsibilities very seriously, and guarantee that we buy quality raw materials from certified sustainable forests, and recycle your old materials that we take away.
Forests are among the most biodiverse and valuable ecosystems on the planet. They are so vital for the planet because 70% of all land animals and plants live in these habitats.
Forests also provide a livelihood for millions of people worldwide. Although most governments enforce laws regarding deforestation, we are still losing 13 million hectares per year which is equivalent to an area the size of Greece.
Main Areas of Deforestation
The main areas of continued deforestation are South America, Africa, and south east Asia. Although the governments in these areas have brought in strict rules and laws, they don’t have the infrastructure to be able to police this efficiently, therefore a lot of illegal logging is still active in many third world countries.
You can see in the picture below the devastating effects from deforestation on the landscape.
There are many factors which cause deforestation not just felling the trees to sell for timber, but areas felled for expanding cities, and agriculture. Agriculture has probably the most prominent effect on forests. Areas cleared for farming create splits in the forest which leads to the animals in that habitat having to find new territory. Animals being territorial, fight for their land and this is a contributory factor of why species can die out from deforestation.
When deforested areas of land are left, which often happens because of a farmer moving on, the land deteriorates. The trees that previously covered that land protected the soil below from the harsh rays of the tropical sun. But now, there are no trees and the soil dries out and deteriorates to an almost desert like state where nothing can grow in the future without further management.
Success of Sustainability in Northern Europe
Northern Europe has been one of the success stories of worldwide forest management. Europe has put in place very strict guidelines and laws with a large budget dedicated to enforcing the criteria. This was reflected by a recent survey which showed that 80% of Europeans were now very concerned about the environment.
You can see below some images of the process of sustaining forests in Norway. The first picture is of young trees being grown in a nursery to shield them from the weather which can often kill young trees. The second image is of trees which are ready to be planted, being planted from the nursery. The third image is of trees between twenty five, and thirty years old, which are now ready for felling for use as timber or paper products.
We at Firth (UK) only use certified timber from European forests in all our products. When you purchase a product from us, you can guarantee that you’re not only buying a top quality hand made product, but you are also doing your bit to help protect our environment and be sutainsable.
