Forest Certification

Forest certification has been widely accepted as a tool that would encourage industrial and non-industrial management of resources in an environmentally acceptable, socially beneficial and economically viable manner. Much has been written on certification yet five issues have been missing, which this book addresses: an analysis of the scientific ba

First published in 1995, The Forest Certification Handbook has become the landmark book concerning all aspects of forest and wood product certification from policy to business to in-the-field technical issues. Yet since first publication an enormous amount has happened in the field. This new second edition has been entirely rewritten to incorporate the changes over the past decade and is a complete and up-to-date source of information on all aspects of developing, selecting and operating a forest certification program that provides both market security and raises standards of forest management.

Ensuring Sustainability in Forestry: certification of forests details the concepts and approaches required to meet the desired international standards of forest certification. It brings together important issues related to forest certification, which need to be applied and utilized in the context of forests in India in the present scenario. It also focuses on economic factors, greening of certification processes, and the interface between technical and business knowledge. Drawing on a wealth of information provided by valuable studies across the globe, this volume discusses forest certification and its impact on conservation and development of biodiversity. It is a comprehensive and detailed guide for forest managers, owners, and consultants; government foresters; and forest product traders.

This paper analyses the development of certification programmes in three countries (Indonesia, Canada and Sweden) using the Advocacy Coalition Framework (ACF) as a theoretical reference point. The ACF is an actor-based framework for analysing policy processes and has not previously been applied in a developing country. Actors in the three countries took different approaches to certification. In Canada, in a programme development process supported by the forest products industry, a management systems approach was taken. In Sweden, performance standards were developed in a process initially driven by NGOs. In Indonesia, certification was led by an NGO within a framework established by government, and a performance standards approach was used. The paper concludes that forest certification can be best understood as a policy instrument that promotes and facilitates policy-orientated learning among actors, and provides indirect incentives for improved forest management. Learning occurs both as the standards to be used for certification are developed, and as they are implemented. The benefits of learning and consensus building among actors (such as NGOs, forest companies, private forest owners, indigenous peoples, governments, etc.) who have traditionally been in conflict with each other can be significant. On the other hand, where fundamental changes in forest policy (such as tenure and forest revenue reform) are needed, certification should not be seen as a substitute for these A further conclusion is that, while public policies change over periods of decades, the private policies of retailers and forest product companies can adapt more rapidly to changing circumstances. The concept of a ‘fast track’ of private policy change, compared to the slower track of governmental policy change, is therefore proposed and described. A number of interesting theoretical and empirical avenues for further research on certification are discussed.

Forest certification has been widely accepted as a tool that would encourage industrial and non-industrial management of resources in an environmentally acceptable, socially beneficial and economically viable manner. Much has been written on certification yet five issues have been missing, which this book addresses: an analysis of the scientific basis for the certification standards; a formal and mechanistic incorporation of social and natural system sustainability as part of the standards; the rationale for the different sets of standards that are currently being used to certify governmental, industrial and non-industrial organizations; the success of the different sets of standards in assessing the environmental acceptability, social benefits and economic viability of the managed system; and, the difficulty of certifying small landowners with current protocols. Forest Certification examines the historical roots of forest certification, the factors that guide the development of certification protocols, the players involved in certification, the factors determining the customers to be certified, and the benefits of certification. The book also covers the terminology and other issues intrinsic to certification that direct the structure of standards, the similarities between indicators of different human disturbances within the ecosystem/landscape and certification standards, and, finally, a case study evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of existing certification protocols. Forest Certification is unique in its analysis of the scientific basis for the structure of the forest certification protocols. It documents the roles of human values in the development of assessment protocols but demonstrates how elements of existing protocols should be used to produce non-value based standards.

People like forests- they have many emotional and cultural attachments to them. They also like forest products - and need increasing quantities of them. But they often don't like, don't understand, and don't trust what comes in between: forest management, which lies at the interface of public services (biodiversity, watersheds, etc) and private goods (timber, food, etc). Certification was developed to independently verify the quality of forest management, to communicate this to market players, and so to improve market benefits for the products of good management. The growing influence of the Forest Stewardship Council is one of the most striking recent developments in forestry. Certification is increasingly common in all continents. But has it actually improved forest management? Has it created sufficient market incentives? Above all, has it enabled trust to develop between stakeholders, so that they can work together better, to build the institutions required for sustainable forest management? This book is the result of two years' study by IIED and collaborators in several countries: it provides evidence for considerable policy and institutional change as a result of certification, and the beginnings of change in forest and market practice.

Forest management auditing is expanding from its traditional focus on forest management, stewardship and Chain of Custody certification to more innovative topics such as ecosystem services, forest carbon credits, Non-Wood Forest Products, wood energy and Fair Trade certification. Forest managers, auditors and project developers require a new range of skills, capacities and expertise to monitor these issues. This book outlines the market-based tools that are required by such professionals to ensure corporate social responsibility in the forestry sector. It shows how a mutual learning process between established forest certification processes and innovative markets is needed. It addresses key topics such as High Conservation Value (HCV) approaches, the role of independent certification versus due diligence process and the engagement of smallholders and SMEs. Beginning with a market and policy analysis, the book fosters a deeper understanding of standards, methodologies and auditing techniques. Numerous case studies are included from a wide range of contexts, including both temperate and tropical forests in developed and developing countries. Overall, the book analyses all the steps towards forest management and forest products and services certification.

Handbook on Forest Certification, a thorough research work, discusses in detail the concepts and approaches required to meet the desired international standards of forest certification. It covers those aspects of forest certification that are practised globally and need to be applied in the emerging context of forests in India. The book focuses on changing global perspective on forest resources, importance and need for sustainable management of forests, increasing consumer awareness, and dealing with preferences for certified forest products. Drawing on a wealth of information provided by valuable studies across the globe, this book discusses sustainable forest management and forest certification and their impact on conservation and development of biodiversity. It is a comprehensive and detailed guide for forest managers, forest owners, practitioners, forest-based industries, academicians, students and researchers, consultants, and policy makers for the forestry sector in India and South Asia. Key features: • Discusses status of forest resources as well as sustainability and forestry • Explains essentials of forest certification and process and forest certification schemes • Dwells on the extent of forest certification and certified timber market and certification of non-timber forest products • Presents framework for forest certification in India • Assesses challenges and potentials of forest certification Contents: 1. Status of Forest Resources: World and India 2. Sustainability and Forestry 3. Management of Forests in India: A Historical Perspective 4. Essentials of Forest Certification: Concept, Evolution, Elements, and Process 5. Forest Certification Schemes 6. Extent of Forest Certification and Certified Timber Market 7. Certification of Non-timber Forest Products 8. Framework for Forest Certification in India 9. Stakeholder Expectations and Economics of Forest Certification 10. Sustainability and Forest Certification 11. Challenges and Potential of Forest certification References Index About the Author