The American Forest Foundation (AFF) recently announced that it has received $1.5 million in funding over three years from the Dutch Biomass Certification Foundation (DBC) for its sustainability assurance work. DBC is a non-profit entity that was established to promote certification and provide support to small forest owners in North America, where the majority of the country’s wood biomass supply is sourced.  

DBC’s investment in AFF will be used for two key efforts:

• Expansion of American Tree Farm System Certification: First, the Dutch funding will contribute to further engage small forest landowners in sustainable forest management and growing American Tree Farm System (ATFS) certification in the U.S. South. This work will help expand the certified land base for the long-term delivery of wood fiber to the Netherlands and beyond. With these funds, AFF intends to expand the use of its new tools that help support foresters in recruiting and onboarding small landowners to ATFS such as

  and, a landowner engagement system.

• Development of a Sustainability Risk Assessment and Mitigation Strategy for DBC: Second, AFF will implement a risk-based approach, customized to the Dutch biomass sourcing requirements. This includes assessment of risks, verification and mitigation programming that will enable Dutch energy generators to verify compliance of their woods supplies with Dutch legislation. AFF, with its network of family forest owners, forest professionals, and conservation organizations, is able to provide measurable and credible mitigation that can affect actual change on the ground. This provides DBC with a greater assurance level and the opportunity for credible conservation impact.

AFF’s work with DBC will begin in 2020. For more information on the DBC’s investment in AFF, visit the press release.