Boise Inc. to Suspend Purchasing From Grassy Narrows

[marcel]

For Immediate Release
Contact: Sam Haswell, 415.659.0519
February 28,
2008
David Sone, 415.659.0510

Rainforest Action Network:
Boise Inc. to Suspend Purchasing From Grassy Narrows

SAN FRANCISCO - Addressing longstanding concerns raised by northwest
Ontario's Grassy Narrows First Nation, Rainforest Action Network
(RAN), and a coalition of allies, Boise Inc. has notified logging
company AbitibiBowater that it will cease purchasing wood fiber logged
from Grassy Narrows' traditional territory in the Whiskey Jack Forest
without the Indigenous community's consent.

According to a letter from Boise to environmental certifiers dated
Feb. 27, the company "wishes to honor the request of [Grassy Narrows]
Chief [Simon] Fobister to discontinue sourcing fiber from the
Traditional Use Area of Grassy Narrows." Boise's landmark decision
comes just four weeks prior to an expected report from former Canadian
Supreme Court Justice Frank Iacobucci on negotiations with the
community over the same concerns.

In a 2007 report, Amnesty International concluded that clear-cut
logging within Grassy Narrows' traditional territory without consent
constitutes human rights violations against the Grassy Narrows people.
The community has strongly opposed clear-cut logging, citing its
constitutional and treaty rights to preserve its territory for
traditional uses such as hunting and trapping.

"It's gratifying to see a major wood products manufacturer like Boise
align its purchasing practices with respect for human rights," said
Brant Olson, director of RAN's Old Growth Campaign. "We urge
Weyerhaeuser and AbitibiBowater to follow Boise's lead and withdraw
from Grassy Narrows until consent from the community is established."

RAN has been collaborating since 2004 with the Grassy Narrows First
Nation, which in January 2007 called for a moratorium on all
industrial uses of its territory that occur without its free, prior
and informed consent. RAN has been engaged in negotiations with Boise
and has organized public demonstrations at OfficeMax and Grand & Toy,
major buyers of Boise paper products, to encourage support for Grassy
Narrows' call for a moratorium.

Boise's commitment leaves Washington-based lumber giant Weyerhaeuser
as AbitibiBowater's highest-profile purchaser of wood obtained from
Grassy Narrows' traditional territory.

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Rainforest Action Network runs hard-hitting campaigns to break
America's oil addiction, reduce our reliance on coal, protect
endangered forests and Indigenous rights, and stop destructive
investments around the world through education, grassroots organizing,
and nonviolent direct action.