States, membel's of the recently consumers would pay more for - PDF document

manu~ Un, ersta dO _g Forest Ce "­ificatio11 . Hansen, Michael P, Washburn, Jim Finley ­ Sustainable Forestry Partnership Certification Systems (SCS) celtification, Worldwide, nearly 9 Forest certification is a system for located in Oakland, California has a million acres oft ird­patiy certified identifying well­managed background in environmental forestl ands cUITently exist, nearly forestland In his context, celtification, Sm rtWood, the halfofthis is in the United States susta'n bil'ty incl des maintenan e world's fi rst forest celiifier, is and halfofthe celtified area in the of ecological, economic, and social US, more than 2,5 million acres, is headquartered in New York, and components, Products from has regional afft I iates performi ng in Pennsylvania, certified forestland can, through certifications, chain­of­custody certification, \Vho ol'ersees the certification move into production streams and What happens in a certificatio ? in le end receive labeling that process? The Forest Stewardship Council During a forest certification an lows customers to know the interdisciplinary team of experts pro ct came fi­orn a certified, (FSC) is a nongovemmental, conducts an on­the­ground weI I­managed forest. Fully international organization that eva I uation of the forest, assesses implemented, certification will accredits third­paliy certifiers and faci I itates development of forest become a market­based mechanism the management plan, and management standards, It was interviews people familiar with the to reward superior forest management. See the bottom of this founded in J 993 "to promote operation, The assessment environmentally responsible, considers ecological, economical, document for contacts where you socially beneficial, and and social aspects of the operation, can get certification related economically viable management assistance and identifY certified of the world's forests," The FSC suppliers near you, Site conditions and the currently rUlls the world's on Iy management plan may justify Although there are other types of internationally active third­patty environmentally controversial forest certification, this publication forest celtification system, practices such as clearcutting and deals only with third­party herbicide application, Assessment certification, Third­paliy forest How are forest management teams encourage activities that celtification is an on­the­ground standards developed? contribute to ecological health such The FSC created a set of 10 evaluation of forest management as retention of snags and down conducted by an accredited principles and criteria covering woody debris, Annual audits assure celtifying organization and based topics such as management compliance with standards, on internationally recognized planning, plantation management, principles and criteria Wi'Lh locally and environmental impact. FSC- Wha t is an ecoLa bel? developed and approved standards, designated agencies organize An ecolabel is a product label that It is similar to a corporate financial stakeholder groups to create indicates the product comes from a audit. Certification of the chain­of- regional standards following these certified forest. The FSC authorizes principles and criteria, It is up to custody is a process to ensure exclusive use of its label to present accurate tracking of products from the FSC to assure consistency and a consistent message to consumers, the forest floor to the living room to approve standards, Regional floor. standards for the Mid­Atlantic What is chain­of­custody? Region including Pennsylvania are To carry an ecolabel, producers Forest certification is a growing sti II under development. must document that a product trend, Environr:lental organizations originated from a certified forest. and forest product and Who are the certifiers? The c1la'n­of­custody is this curing co panies are In the United States, there are two documentation pap r l ail. F C­accre 'ted c rtifiers, Scie i IC Ie di g the mo eme t wa'd Producers may m nat re both

c~,tifi The second cost of ation is Chain-of-custody certification uses Sumrnal'y pl'imc'·jly existing inventory [t still is unclear how cet,iiication t e indirect cost of changing wiI I de elop or ll" impact it I. lay anagement practices, if contrai Iss e TIS to ss :'e I neceSSdIY, to ob ain cen' .:icatio, , segrega ion 0 tertified and have on mar ers. To date, its Most cun'ently certified noncertified mat Iial. The direct impact is modest. However, it is cost of certification typically is develo ing quickly in landowners made a few ajor less than $3,000. Again, little is Pennsylvania and the rest of the changes in their management known about the indirect costs of world. Those already certified are practices. Little information ex;s~s po ential changes in production receiving benefits, but the potential regarding these costs. practi ces. payoff for small woodland owners Limited demand: There is some is less clear. Regardless of your demand for certified products in Evolving system: The FSC is opinion of certi Ication, it is young and developing, impoliant to follow its the United States, but it is a small Consequently, there are many development market. Since most demand doesn't come from final consumers, it is unceliainties and unresolved issues. While some innovators are difficult to predict how this market Contacts for more information going ahead, uncertainty will develo ,If consumers begin to recog ize and prefer certified discourages the involvement of For questions relating to FSC products, demand will grow many companies and landowners. celtification: More conservative operators are Forest Stewardship Council quickly. waiting to see how celiification Phone: 802-244-6257 develops before deciding how to Chain­of­custody: Chain-of- http://www.scscertified.com/ custody often is seen as a paliicipate. forestry/ significant challenge and cost, especially by operations such as Possibly the most important To locate suppliers of certified paper mills that have hundreds of outstanding issue is development wood near you: suppliers and use continuous of regional standards. These Forest Certification Resource processing, making it difficult to standards wi II hel p landowners Center keep certified fiber separate from understand more specifically what Phone: 503-224-2205 non-certified fiber. they need to do to receive email: fcrc@metafore,org celiification. http://www,CeJiifiedwoodsearch, However, for many operations, the org/search products. aspx challenges may be surmountable.