In the 20 years since FSC launched, we’ve created a certification system that mobilises market forces, offering people a way to create positive impact in forests and communities through purchasing decisions.
Our governance model has helped to shape a global dialogue to de_ ne responsible forest management. This has led to largescale change on the ground, with positive outcomes for forests and their inhabitants. And the FSC Global Strategic Plan 2015- 2020 clarifies its position to ensure its direction matches challenges faced by the world’s forests and forest stakeholders.
Today, we believe FSC is the world’s strongest forest certification system, in terms of global reach, robustness of certification criteria and total of businesses involved in the system. The number of FSC chain of custody (CoC) certificates has increased by 89% from 15,766 in 2010 to 29,854 in 2015, FSC-certified forest area by 56% since 2010 to over 187 million hectares.
Around 300 million m3 of FSC certified wood are harvested every year, constituting 16.6% of the global industrial roundwood market, and 8% of the global fuelwood and industrial roundwood market. The latest Timber Trade Federation (TTF) responsible sourcing report, which covers around 76% of the overall volume of timber and logs consumed in the UK in 2014, concludes that 65% of all timber, 88% of panel product and 93% of log purchases were FSC-certified. More over, half the UK public recognise the FSC logo and 72% are very or fairly likely to give preference to FSC-certified products, according to GfK NOP and YouGov Plc polls.
Unfortunately, much of the world still faces major forest challenges, meaning that we need to be bolder, stronger, and measurably more effective. This is why the strategic plan aims to more than double our share of global forest-based trade by 2020, to 20%.
The strategic plan commits to improving FSC’s certification system and emphasises increasing FSC certification in tropical countries, while meeting the needs of certificate holders providing a voice to those most affected by mismanaged forests.
COORDINATION WITH GOVERNMENT The Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) Action Plan launched in 2003 to combat illegal logging and timber. It placed its actions "in the context of the overall efforts of the European Community to achieve sustainable forest management, both within and outside the EU."
FSC shares this goal, but depends on the voluntary engagement of foresters and the forest industry. Effective law enforcement is also needed, which is somewhere FLEGT, with its focus on illegal harvesting, can help.
In principle, FLEGT enforcement can make certification easier for foresters, as it lays a foundation of legal compliance and helps to ensure illegal logging will no longer undermine the commercial viability of legal practices.
But national legislation often lacks essential requirements to ensure sustainable resource management and FSC can be instrumental in moving to sustainability.
CERTIFICATION AND EUTR Meanwhile, the EU Timber Regulation (EUTR) inspired FSC to adopt a number of amendments and clarifications to its standards which ensure that the scheme conforms entirely to its requirements.
However, the first two years of EUTR enforcement have raised concerns over insufficient appreciation by EU member states authorities of certification’s role in reducing illegal harvesting risks. We’re looking forward to the result of the EUTR review in early 2016, having called for improvements such as an enlarged product category coverage, active enforcement in all EU member states, and sufficient capacity and expertise within the ‘competent authorities’.
We also want to see a more unified, clarified appreciation of the contribution of certification to due diligence systems importers and domestic foresters (‘operators’ in EUTR terminology) have to apply. Better recognition of the strength of the FSC scheme can do much for EUTR, FLEGT and the common mission of sustainable forest management.
