Newsletter Forestry and Wood Certification



|Newsletter Forestry and Wood Certification No. 5/2004 |

|Information contained in this newsletter is sent to approximately 14 000 recipients in 14 countries and is translated into 9 languages. |

|This bi-monthly newsletter provides information on progress in improving forest management around the world. Particular attention is given to |

|credible forest certification, threats to forests such as illegal logging, trends in the investment sector and companies/ individuals showing |

|leadership. |

|Contact the editor on hb@ |

Improving Forest Management in Europe and Around the World 1

WB/WWF Assessment of Certification Systems to Proceed 2

Bauhaus Commits to Good Wood 3

Ramin Among the World´s 10 Most “Wanted” Species 3

Don’t Forget to Check Forest Laws For Justice 4

More Risks and Opportunities for Forest Business With Russia 4

Illegal Logging in Forest Reserves of Cote d`Ivoire 5

Congo Forests to Ease Government Debt 5

Paper in Focus 5

China: Crouching Fiber, Paper Dragon 5

APP Gets Too Risky for Business Partners 6

Greenpeace and “The Paper Trail” Campaign 6

First FSC Global Paper Forum 7

Focus on Responsible Investment and CSR 7

IFC Criticised For Lowering Environmental Requirements 7

Global Evaluation of Corporate Sustainability Reports 7

18 Financial Institutions Make Recommendations on CSR 8

News on FSC 8

FSC: 10 Years of Forest Leadership 8

Every Fifth Swiss Knows FSC 9

Young People Most Aware of FSC in the Netherlands 9

Step Forward for FSC in Finland 10

30% Increase in FSC Chain of Custody Certificates 10

Background and Facts 10

Certification Assistance 11

Improving Forest Management in Europe and Around the World

19 Governments Rated on Illegal Logging Measures and Commitments

On September 17 WWF launched an evaluation on how 19 EU governments are currently tackling the problem of illegal logging.

The key findings of the report showed, that while most countries are still failing to take effective action on illegal logging at a national level, 16 of 19 countries are ready to outlaw illegal logging Europe-wide. “Illegal logging needs to become prosecutable as a criminal offence, full stop. The results of this study send a clear message to the European Commission to stop dragging its feet on outlawing the import of illegal timber into the EU”, said Beatrix Richards, WWF forest policy officer.

The WWF survey also found that 15 governments are ready to tackle illegal logging in the new member states and candidate countries. Support for such an initiative now also come from new member states such as Estonia, Hungary, Latvia and Slovakia.

The overall results of the Government Barometer still show a lack of strong measures domestically to tackle illegal logging and related trade. Only the UK obtains satisfactory results, followed by Germany, Denmark, France, Latvia and Sweden, which rated from moderate to good. Since the last evaluation in April, significant improvements were made by Germany and slight improvements also by the UK, Denmark and France. Access the rating on baromter.

Source: WWF Press release September 17 2004

WB/WWF Assessment of Certification Systems to Proceed

The World Bank/WWF Alliance for Forest Conservation & Sustainable Use (Alliance) is moving ahead with testing its Questionnaire for Assessing the Comprehensiveness of Certification Schemes/Systems (QACC) launched last July. After several months of intensive consultation with certification systems, environmental organizations, and trade associations designed to make the process the most comprehensive and transparent evaluation ever of its kind, the testing program will proceed in October. The development and testing of the QACC will help provide a reliable and transparent tool that will help the Alliance measure progress toward its target on forest certification.

The upcoming field tests will use the questionnaire to assess the application of two forest certification schemes—the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and Program for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) —at the national level in both Eastern and Western Europe. The Alliance will sponsor the testing program in six countries in Eastern Europe that are eligible to borrow from the World Bank, while WWF will sponsor the testing program in Western Europe. The practical experience gained from this exercise will be used to refine the questionnaire and assist WWF and the World Bank to evaluate which of the activities they have supported over the last several years can be counted when scoring progress against the Alliance’s certification target.

"At a time when unsustainable and illegal forest harvesting robs people in developing countries of their livelihoods and contributes to environmental decline, it is essential that we have a reliable tool for assessing forest certification systems whose use we may be asked to support,” said David Cassells, The World Bank’s Alliance Co-Chair.

Prior to moving on to the field testing phase, the Alliance engaged with representatives from FSC and PEFC, the two certification systems under assessment; experienced forest scientists; and practitioners from a broad range of organizations to help refine the questionnaire for field testing. The Alliance has appointed an independent, multi-disciplinary review panel to oversee the process, ensure technical rigor and objectivity, and provide advice to the Alliance partners on further improvements to the QACC.

“We commend those systems that have agreed to participate in this exercise,” said Duncan Pollard, Head of the WWF European Forest Programme, “It speaks volumes to their commitment to transparency and stakeholder engagement.”

The Alliance promotes the use of forest certification to help improve forest management practice, and is working towards a target of helping to bring 200 million hectares of production forests under independently certified management.

“Minimum requirements on environmental management and social issues, as well as transparency and stakeholder participation, are essential requirements for forest certification,” said Bruce Cabarle, WWF’s Alliance Co-Chair. “The QACC provides a systematic framework for assessing whether a particular system meets the requirements developed by the Alliance and subsequently incorporated into The World Bank’s Operational Policy on Forests. The revised QACC will provide a useful tool for the World Bank and WWF as they seek to catalyze real improvements in the management of the World’s forests.”

Source: Press release WB Alliance September 30 2004 .

Bauhaus Commits to Good Wood

WWF welcomes the recent decision of Bauhaus AG to take leadership to help stop bad forestry practices like irresponsible and illegal harvesting. The commitment by Bauhaus AG comes after a WWF public awareness action asking major companies, so-called Wood Giants, for transparency and leadership. Bauhaus AG has committed to

1. work systematically on excluding illegal wood and wood from primeval forests from their products

2. closely monitor all their products to ensure their origin is known and legality is assured

3. explore further co-operation with WWF, and consider joining WWF's Forest and Trade Network.

The Do it Yourself – retailer Bauhaus AG has stores in Slovenia, Czech Republic, Croatia, Austria, Germany, Finland, Denmark, Sweden, France, Spain, and Turkey.

With an increased emphasis on consumer awareness, WWF seeks leadership from a critical mass of the world´s largest wood buyers and traders. WWF provides guidance to consumers about purchasing choices which support the world´s forests.

Source: WWF International forests/goodwood

Ramin Among the World´s 10 Most “Wanted” Species

Early September WWF published a list of the 10 worldwide most “wanted” species- species that are bought, sold, smuggled, killed or captured for the global marketplace and most at risk from unregulated international trade. The tropical hardwood Ramin (Gonystylus spp.) from Indonesia and Malaysia found itself for the first time on this list.

The NGO TRAFFIC also highlight critical threats to Ramin through legal and illegal trade in their recent report Framing the Picture: An Assessment of Ramin Trade in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. This report shows that while global demand continues to rise, Ramin is becoming increasingly rare in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. According to the report, the annual volume of Ramin harvested in Indonesia has declined by over 90 per cent in the last 30 years. The harvest in Malaysia has decreased by two thirds. TRAFFIC's analysis also reveals significant discrepancies in reported export and import volumes, as well as confirming that illegally logged Ramin from Indonesia continues to make its way onto world markets. Ramin is used to make mouldings, doors, pool cues and picture frames.

WWF and TRAFFIC are sending their findings to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) in October.

Sources: Press release WWF September 9 2004; Press release Traffic August 19 2994; access the report by Traffic on

Don’t Forget to Check Forest Laws For Justice

Opinion piece from the WWF European Forest Programme:

While the EU debate focuses on stopping the import of illegal timber we should not forget that forest legislation in many wood producing countries requires debate and reform. Are these laws always just? What effect do some laws have on local and indigenous communities? Is the EU providing the right incentives by only asking for “legal” timber without encouraging forest law reform? An example to illustrate the difficulty: A new emergency regulation on illegal logging in Indonesia sets out a system of serious penalties for illegal logging, including: the death penalty or life imprisonment. A problem for Indigenous groups and local people could arise from the fact that customary rights are not accounted for in this new regulation and indigenous communities could be penalised for what they do in their customary forests.

What is termed legal or illegal needs sometimes close scrutiny. The EU must also focus on governance issues and support possible legislative reforms when asking for legal timber.

Sources: WWF European Forest Programme; FERN

More Risks and Opportunities for Forest Business With Russia

The new Forest Code which will be decided soon by the Russian government is likely to have a strong emphasis on maximising the profits from the Russian forest resource. Environmental NGOs, including WWF, have made a range of suggestions to limit the threats to forest biodiversity, however it is yet unclear if these concerns will be reflected. Russia's forests are already under severe pressure: Illegal and unsustainable logging, logging in old-growth forests and forests of high conservation value pose a huge threat to biodiversity but also to people's livelihoods. Anyone with an interest in Russia's forest resource should be aware of potential environmental and social corporate risks.

The Association of Environmentally Responsible Timber Producers of Russia, founded with the assistance of WWF, has now 12 members from all forest products sectors. These companies have adopted environmental policies, which commit them to promote environmentally responsible, socially beneficial and economically viable management of forests, including an action plan towards FSC certification of their operations and their supply base.

Until the end of 2004 most of the companies will be FSC chain of custody certified. It is expected that by the end of 2005 5 million hectares of forests under lease by these companies or supplying these companies will be FSC certified. By the end of 2010 the projection is for 10 million hectares of FSC certified forests in Russia.

The Association includes companies from Northwest Russia, from the Ural, Caucasus and Siberia: Ilim Pulp Enterprise, Volga-Paper, Arkhangelsk Pulp and Paper, Solombalskij Sawmill, Kartontara, Tamak, Cherepovezles, Sawmill №3, Sawmill №25, Lesosibirskij Sawmill, Solikamskbumprom and Dammers. Together they have a combined annual turnover of nearly 2 billion dollars. These companies are continually monitored by WWF.

More information about the Association and the progress of individual companies can be obtained from Andrey Ryzhkov, Producer Group Manager WWF Russia aryzhkov@wwf.ru; Tel: + 7 (095) 745 60 73

A Cocktail of Illegal Logs and Bribery in Indonesia

West Java's Cirebon legislative council has asked local authorities to stop the shipments of illegal logs at the city's port, which have continued unhindered for the last three years.

A council investigation showed at least 60 ships, mostly from Kalimantan, loaded and unloaded illegal logs at the Cirebon port every month. "This means about 2,160 ships entered Cirebon for the last three years," the council speaker said. The ships involved in the illegal shipping activities each had a capacity of at least 500 cubic meters. "What stuns us is that the activities have continued for a long time and law and security authorities appear to have ignored them. The cargo is already illegal, in addition to the rampant collection of bribes there. This strengthens our suspicions that corruption is unchecked at the port".

Source: Jakarta Post, August 2, 2004

Illegal Logging in Forest Reserves of Cote d`Ivoire

Cote d`Ivoire`s forested area is estimated to have shrunk from 16 million hectares in 1960 to 3 million hectares today. Cote d`Ivoire is estimated to have lost US$114,5 million between 1978-2004 due to the abusive and illegal exploitation of its forests according to the Secretary General of the National Union of Forestry and Water Experts of Cote d`Ivoire, Major Réné Paul Gessler. "The abusive and illegal exploitation continues in most of the protected forest reserves in spite of the war situation. A disaster is imminent if nothing is done to stop this practice.” According to him, the government was to blame for encouraging the abusive exploitation of certain national parks by giving a license to the Society for the Exploitation and Development of Forestry Products (SMICI). "Certain tree species like the Iroko and Assiegie are today faced with extinction from the 101.000 hectare Marahoue national park because, apart from the SMCI, about 10 other companies are also exploiting timber from there," added Gessler.

Source: Angola Press, 31 August 2004

Congo Forests to Ease Government Debt

Congo's plans to open up its rainforest for increased commercial logging are meeting heavy criticism by environmental groups. The country's government, currently $4.9 billion in debt, has decided to support growth of the timber industry in the Congo Basin. The Congo Basin has the world's second largest stretches of virgin rainforest after the Amazon in South America. Greenpeace is criticizing that logging concessions are often allocated via discretionary procedures. Many companies operating in the Congo basin are believed to be involved in illegal logging.

Source: BBC, August 16 2004



Paper in Focus

China: Crouching Fiber, Paper Dragon

The American NGO Metafore has published an analysis of China´s influence on the Global Paper Market. The report summarises that the Chinese paper market is evolving rapidly and the country is significantly adding fibre growing and processing capacity. “Corporations interested in the environmental and social aspects of the paper they use face a number of challenges related to paper products originating in China. The challenges include:

• the quality of recovered fiber and the price stability in this market;

• concerns about the forest practices associated with pulp imports and fiber domestically grown on

plantations; and,

• the environmental, especially water- and energy-related impacts of manufacturing paper products.”

According to Metafore, environmentally responsible buyers of paper products should examine these challenges in depth and assess what impacts they might have on their respective companies.

The report Crouching fiber, paper dragon: China and the global paper market can be found at

APP Gets Too Risky for Business Partners

Jakarta Post reported on September 21 that Major Japanese importers may reject pulp and paper products produced by Indonesia-based Asia Pulp and Paper Co. (APP).

According to the environmental group Robin Wood, the German retailer Metro has also agreed to stop selling Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) products.

On September 20 two of Asia Pulp & Paper's (APP) bondholder creditors - Oaktree Capital Management and Gramercy Advisors - seized the group's booth at the international School, Home & Office Products Association (SHOPA) trade show in Orlando, Florida. In April, the New York state supreme court entered a money judgment of almost $400 million against APP. The verdict meant that the plaintiff bondholder creditors, which included Oaktree and Gramercy, could seek enforcement against APP's assets in any location.

Office Depot, suspended its relationship with APP earlier this year pending an environmental review of the company.

WWF has published a "Statement Summarizing WWF concerns over the Origin of Fiber for the Mills of APP Company in Sumatra, Indonesia". This statement is available on WWF Indonesia's web site at .

WWF has asked APP customers to review their business relations with APP/SMG in the light of strong evidence that APP's products continue to be contaminated with illegal timber and fiber sourced by clearing natural forests likely to contain high conservation values.

While the concerns over the Indonesian resource use by APP are at high alert, APP China is mulling over plans to build a 1 million tonne/yr pulp and paper mill in the Krasnoyarsk region of central Russia. The firm is currently carrying out a feasibility study on the scheme.

Sources: Jakarta Post September 21; Robin Wood August 25; Paperloop September 20 2004; ; , 23 July 2004; WWF International; WWF Indonesia September 2004

Greenpeace and “The Paper Trail” Campaign

Greenpeace is currently working with publishers in Canada, Germany, Italy, UK, France, Spain, Belgium and the Netherlands to encourage them to switch to “Ancient Forest Friendly” paper. To date, more than 100 authors are already supporting the worldwide campaign which promotes recycled and FSC paper. In Canada alone 4.5 million books have been printed on “Ancient Forest Friendly” paper. The most prominent supporters are JK Rowling, Margaret Atwood, Helen Fielding and Günter Grass.

Since the start of the campaign in 2000 close to 20 European publishers and 67 Canadian publishers have committed to preferentially utilise recycled and FSC certified fibres.

Source: Greenpeace ;

First FSC Global Paper Forum

The FSC Global Paper Forum held its inaugural meeting on 9 September 2004 in Bonn, Germany. It was created to discuss challenges and benefits of FSC certification in the paper sector. The Forum was attended by FSC National Initiatives, Certifiers, NGOs and 20 companies from Europe, Canada, the US and Japan. Present were also major pulp and paper suppliers with a strong commitment to FSC: Alberta-Pacific Forest Industries, Tembec and SCA. All stakeholders were supportive of the concept of the Forum and formed a steering committee of company and NGO representatives to discuss further steps on issues such as the implementation of the new FSC chain-of-custody standards, recycling and market linkages.

Source: FSC International September 9 2004

Focus on Responsible Investment and CSR

IFC Criticised For Lowering Environmental Requirements

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector lending arm of the World Bank has been criticised by environmental and social groups for planning to relax its environmental and social guidelines when lending money to the private sector. In a letter to the IFC, who is currently reviewing its lending policies, NGOs emphasise that while they support the intention of the IFC to update its policies, they are alarmed about a major shift from a mandatory and compliance-based approach to a mainly discretionary approach, diluting the responsibilities of a public institution and undermining its accountability to affected communities. The joint NGO letter is asking for comprehensive improvements in substance and consultation with civil society.

Source: September 2004

Global Evaluation of Corporate Sustainability Reports

A global report on the status of corporate sustainability reporting was released on September 16 by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA). The report recognizes significant growth in such reporting worldwide, but also highlights major weaknesses such as lack of consistency; weak support from governments guiding or mandating sustainability reporting; and slow buy-in by mainstream investors. "The number of companies reporting is insignificant when compared with the total number of businesses operating in the world today," adds the report, which pegs the number of companies worldwide producing sustainability reports at 1,500 to 2,000. "While pressure is being increasingly brought to bear by socially responsible investors, [support for sustainability reporting] has yet to be taken up seriously by mainstream investors," the report states. "We need to identify the dynamics of successful reporting and work to develop the necessary initiatives, codes, regulations, and other factors which will remove the blockages in slower regions and business sectors."

Source: September 16 The Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) established the world's first environmental reporting awards in 1990, and , tracking past and current trends in sustainability reporting.

18 Financial Institutions Make Recommendations on CSR

18 financial institutions from 9 countries with total assets under management of over 6 trillion USD have participated in developing recommendations to better integrate environmental, social and governance issues in analysis, asset management and securities brokerage. The report Who Cares Wins aims at increasing the awareness of all involved financial market actors and at triggering a broader discussion.

“The institutions endorsing this report are convinced that in a more globalized, interconnected and competitive world the way that environmental, social and corporate governance issues are managed is part of companies’ overall management quality needed to compete successfully. Companies that perform better with regard to these issues can increase shareholder value by, for example, properly managing risks, anticipating regulatory action or accessing new markets, while at the same time contributing to the sustainable development of the societies in which they operate.”

The report’s recommendations include:

• Analysts are asked to better incorporate environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in their research

• Financial institutions should commit to integrating environmental, social and governance factors in a more systematic way in research and investment processes.

• Companies are asked to take a leadership role by implementing environmental, social and corporate governance principles and polices and to provide information and reports on related performance in a more consistent and standardised format.

• Investors are urged to explicitly request and reward research that includes environmental, social and governance aspects and to reward well-managed companies.

• Asset managers are asked to integrate research on such aspects in investment decisions and to encourage brokers and companies to provide better research and information.

• Pension fund trustees and their selection consultants are encouraged to consider environmental, social and governance issues

• Consultants and financial advisers should help create a greater and more stable demand for research in this area by combining research on environmental, social and governance aspects with industry level research and sharing their experience with financial market actors and companies in order to improve their reporting on these issues.

• Regulators are invited to shape legal frameworks in a predictable and transparent way as this will support integration in financial analysis.

• Stock exchanges are invited to include environmental, social and governance criteria in listing particulars for companies as this will ensure a minimum degree of disclosure across all listed companies.

• Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) can also contribute to better transparency by providing objective information on companies to the public and the financial community.

The report Who Cares Wins, Connecting Financial Markets to a Changing World is the result of a joint initiative (supported by the UN and the Swiss Government) of the following companies: ABN Amro, Aviva AXA Group, Banco do Brasil, Bank Sarasin, BNP Paribas, Calvert Group; CNP Assurances, Credit Suisse Group; Deutsche Bank; Goldman Sachs, Henderson Global Investors; HSBC, Innovest; ISIS Asset Management, KLP; Insurance; Morgan Stanley, RCM (a member of Allianz Dresdner Asset Management), UBS; Westpac and can be found on July 2004

News on FSC

FSC: 10 Years of Forest Leadership

More than 250 stakeholders from over 40 countries, representing social, environmental and economic interests, gathered to celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the Forest Stewardship Council from September 10 to 13 in Bonn, Germany.

Tasso Azevedo, Director of Forests at Ministry of Environment in Brazil said at the opening ceremony of the celebration: "The Impacts of FSC in the South are beyond the certificate. FSC has been a catalyst of change in the relationship between different stakeholders. NGOs had to change from "no" to "how to" and Business had to move from "no way" to "tell me your idea". The new approach has even influenced how legislation is made in some countries."

Alan Knight - Kingfisher/B&Q said: “Before helping create to the FSC a journalist told us - if you don't know where your tropical timber comes from you don't care. But of course we cared. We started to ask questions ourselves, but we are retailers, not foresters. Our vision behind the FSC was to have an organization to help us only stock wood from well managed forests and be able to prove that to our customers and other stakeholders. Let me summarize - FSC was a big idea that was shared by many, rules and conventions were ignored, individuals took huge risks, their bosses took huge risks, it led to real partnerships, it forced people to react, it stirred emotions and it was and is right. Thanks to everybody for making FSC a huge success - we can be proud of what we have done."

"By creating a mechanism that gives equal weight to social, environmental, and economic interests, FSC has provided a solution that uses the market to encourage responsible forests management”, said Claude Martin, Director General of WWF International. “On behalf of the WWF Network, I would like to extend our congratulations and best wishes to FSC”.

To date 45 million hectares of forests are FSC certified in 61 countries. More on the 10th anniversary on .

Sources: FSC 10th anniversary Bonn September 10; FSC International; WWF European Forest Programme. Access Claude Martin´s speech at the celebration on

Every Fifth Swiss Knows FSC

A recent consumer survey in Switzerland shows that every fifth Swiss recognises the FSC label. This is up from a recognition rate of 10% in 2002. The age group most responsive to the FSC label was the group aged 30 – 49 years of age with 25% prompted recognition.

In 2003 the companies of the WWF forest and trade network in Switzerland had a turnover of 43 Million Euro with FSC-Products which is 52% more than the year before.

Sources: Survey conducted by LINK-Institutes, Luzern, commissioned by WWF; Holzzentralblatt August 20 2004

Young People Most Aware of FSC in the Netherlands

A survey on FSC knowledge in the Netherlands showed that in particular young people between 18 - 35 had the highest awareness of the label i.e. 41% in this age group know the label spontaneously and had an 68% aided awareness. Ab Sulman, representative of Heliview, the company carrying out the survey, said "It is very special that recognition was high under young people, since this group is difficult to reach. It is difficult to compare the market introduction with other products but it is clear that this one was very successful." The 2004 consumer campaign to promote FSC in the Netherlands - the third of its kind - was done in co-ordination between FSC, WWF Netherlands, Stichting DOEN Foundation and 30 companies. Overall, FSC was recognized by 62% of people when some brief explanation was given and, 33% recognized FSC immediately. In the Netherlands, 26% of people interviewed stated that they pay attention to FSC logo when they buy wood products.

Sources: WWF Netherlands; FSC International September 2004

Step Forward for FSC in Finland

The Finnish FSC National Working Group was officially endorsed by FSC at the recent 10th anniversary.

Source: FSC International September 11 2004

30% Increase in FSC Chain of Custody Certificates

Over the last 2 years the numbers of Chain of Custody (CoC) certificates worldwide has increased by a third, reaching 3277. Currently, the countries leading on CoC certificates are the US followed by the UK, Poland, Germany, the Netherlands, Japan, Brazil, Switzerland, South Africa, Sweden and Canada – all with over 100 CoC certificates. Over 50 certificates are held by companies in Italy, Latvia, China, Belgium, Vietnam, France, New Zealand and Denmark.

Source: WWF European Forest Programme, using data from FSC International September 2004

Background and Facts

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The Forest Stewardship Council is currently the only credible timber certification system supported by WWF. The FSC label makes it possible for buyers to choose forest products that come from forests managed to the highest environmental and social standards and from legal sources. As global system FSC offers market incentives for improving forest management around the world.

Events

27th – 29th October 2004 Vienna

Adam Smith Conferences - 9th annual conference on Pulp & Paper in Russia and the CIS.

11-12th November Triple Bottom Line Investment Conference

The worlds largest conference on investments that provides a financial, social and environmental return (Triple Bottom Line Investing) is taking place in Amsterdam



Key Statistics

Status: September 2004

Total area of FSC certified forests: 45.936.000 hectares

Number of countries with FSC forests: 61

FM certificates: 658

COC certificates:  3277

 For regional maps and data on certified areas in Europe, Africa, Asia – Pacific, Latin America and North America go to

Programme Information

For Information on the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)

Global Forest And Trade Network forestandtrade

Forests For Life Programme, WWF forests4life; forests/goodwood

Certification Basics

An Introduction to Forest Certification: (2001)

NGO Positions on Certification Systems

Behind the logo (2001) -In-depth report of the four biggest forest certification schemes (CSA, FSC, PEFC & SFI) analyses the strengths and weaknesses of each scheme and aims to provide companies, governments and NGOs with the facts needed for informed decision making.

Follow up report: Footprints in the Forest (2004) – In depth report on Canadian Standard’s Association (CSA), Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC), Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), Australian Forestry Standard (AFS), Sistema Brazileiro de Certificação Florestal (CERFLOR), Certificación Forestal (Certfor) and the Malaysian Timber Certification Council (MTCC). 

Make Your Own Judgement About Certification Schemes

Assessing Forest Certification: A Practical Guide : (2002)

Certification Assistance

All aspects of certification and more on responsible forest management:

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Where to Sell and Buy Certified Timber

Global search for FSC certified timber and products:

: This database allows you to search by type of timber and timber species, by product type and supply chain position and country.

On fsc-. you can search for FSC certified species all over the world. Search mechanism include species ( open query) , tenure and country.

Global search for FSC Forest Management and Chain of Custody certificate holders

fsc-.

On you can confirm certification status of a company

Global search for FSC certified forests:

The advantage of this certified forest list is the contact details like telephone numbers are included.

Most up to date information on which forests and which companies are certified can be found on the main FSC International website - however here information is mainly aimed at providing an overview rather than to help establish contact.

Check approved FSC certifiers on

For a comprehensive list of FSC-certified producers and wholesalers of office and publication paper as well as printers in Europe for to forestandtrade;

Assistance With Group Certification

A Practical Guide to Developing a Group Scheme for FSC-Accredited Certification of Forests: Final Draft (2001)

Responsible Investment

For Investment guidelines by the Worldbank/ WWF Alliance go to



Learning From Others

400 companies are part of the WWF co-ordinated Global Forest and Trade Network (GFTN), committed to responsible forest management and trade. They represent a wide range of actors including forest owners, timber processors, construction companies, retailers, investment agencies and local authorities. Members vary from small family-owned businesses to world scale leading companies such as IKEA and the Home Depot. They are committed to gradually producing, trading and/or sourcing independently certified forest products. Find more information about GFTN at:

To learn from the experiences of other companies who are already part of the network get in touch with one of the forest and trade network co-ordinators. Contact details can be found on

Multiple Solutions for the World´s Forests by WWF

WWF works on forest conservation through a multiplicity of approaches and strategies which are pursued together with regional and global partners: Credible Forest Certification, High Conservation Value Forests, combating illegal logging and forest crime, preventing forest fires, restoring damaged and degraded forests and forest protection. WWF's Forests for Life Programme has developed position papers on global forest issues which are available on

The World Bank/ WWF Alliance was formed in 1998 and draws on the comparative institutional strengths of the partner institutions:

• the Bank's access to policy dialogue, convening power, analytical capacity and financing operations,

• WWF's strong field presence, private sector partnerships, public trust and forest conservation expertise.

By combining the strengths of the Bank and WWF, and their partners, the Alliance is uniquely positioned to effect changes in forest policy and practices, to help safeguard biodiversity, and alleviate poverty.

With forests being depleted globally at a rate of 28 hectares per minute, the stakes are high. Urgent, significant and coordinated actions on a global scale are needed to arrest the precipitous and relentless declines in forest cover, the concomitant loss of biodiversity, and the effects on the livelihoods of forest-dependent people.

For more information on the World Bank/ WWF Alliance go to forest-

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Congratulations to FSC

for its 10th anniversary!

see article on page 9

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In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

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