FSC and PEFC set big goals

Summary
• There is now over 300 million ha of certified forest and almost 25% of world roundwood is from certified forest.
• The number of chain of custody certificates grew by more than 40% last year.
• The overwhelming majority of certified forest is in temperate zones.
• Biomass markets add a potential new source of demand.
• CPET’s review of schemes is under way.

The forest certification landscape is now almost entirely defined by the two global schemes, the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification Schemes (PEFC). Assuming that the applications by the American Tree Farm System (ATFS) and the Malaysian Timber Certification Scheme (MTCS, formerly MTCC) for endorsement by PEFC are ultimately successful, this will effectively mean that all certified timber entering the marketplace is recognised by one of these two international schemes.

The past year has been a period of both milestones and change for FSC and PEFC. FSC now has over 100 million ha of certified forest, while PEFC has passed the 200 million ha mark (around two-thirds of which is in North America, under the CSA and SFI schemes).

Now in its 15th year, FSC has just appointed a new executive director, Andre Giacini de Freitas, to oversee the next stage in its development, while PEFC has recently adopted a new strategic plan and moved its headquarters to Geneva. While both FSC and PEFC pursue their own development strategies, there is as little sign as ever of any moves towards mutual recognition.

Most countries show a predominant tendency towards one or other of the schemes, with only a minority, such as Sweden and the US, having a balance between the two.

The total certified area of over 320 million ha now amounts to an estimated 13% or so of managed forest. However, this is given further context by the fact that the proportion of roundwood originating from certified forests is now estimated to have risen to a startling 24% of global output.

There is a general awareness that the level of conversion of this raw material into certified final products is still low for a range of reasons, but the recent rapid rise in numbers of chain of custody (CoC) certificates indicates that this may be gradually changing.

The growth rate in the number of CoC certificates is much greater than that of forest area, at over 40%. FSC still accounts for around two-thirds of CoC certificates and is seeing faster recent growth than PEFC. This is a clear sign that, although there is a long way to go, the flow of certified roundwood is increasingly finding its way into markets for recognised certified products.

China has transformed into the world’s largest manufacturing country for timber products. China imports forest products from around the world, but Russia and Indonesia are currently the main suppliers of products by volume. Between 1997 and 2006, China’s volume of manufactured timber product exports increased over four-fold, and the country is now the world’s largest plywood producer and furniture manufacturer.

Against this backdrop, China is also one of the fastest growing locations for chain of custody certification and, as of April 2008, more than 500 FSC CoC certificates have been issued there.

However, some concerns have been raised about the reliability of all of these certificates and FSC has been paying close attention to this. FSC is now developing specific certification guidelines for China, undertaking a training programme for auditors and implementing ‘Flow-web’ database tracking.

Tropical regions

FSC has now also had some modest breakthroughs in the certification of natural forests in tropical regions. Roughly two-thirds of the certified tropical forest area is under FSC, with the remainder certified by MTCS (the latter amounting to about 1% of the global total certified area). However, it remains the case that only 15% of the FSC certified area is located in tropical regions, and this is reflected by the fact that only about 0.1% of the forest area in Africa and Asia is certified. The corresponding figure for western Europe is over 50%.

A new factor in the picture is the recent development of sustainability criteria for biomass. Demand in all areas of renewable energy, including woody biomass, is set for dramatic growth, and the likely need for verification of the environmental performance of biofuels could act as an important new driver for forest certification.

It is also possible that new initiatives under discussion to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases from deforestation and forest degradation (known as REDD), will have a potential role in the schemes’ monitoring systems for forest certification.

While both schemes are showing robust growth, the linked factors of market share and relative credibility remain critically important. Both schemes have been criticised over poor performance by certified forest managers and/or certification bodies.

This is acknowledged by Andre de Freitas in his opening public comments as FSC executive director. "Credibility is one of FSC's key assets and as the system grows we need to ensure that we maintain and strengthen our credibility," he said.

Forest certification is hugely important as a tool for the forest products sector to demonstrate a responsible approach to business, and both schemes must therefore remain under pressure to deliver credible results. To do otherwise would undermine the lead taken by the sector in responsible sourcing.

CPET’s review of schemes

An important factor in this pressure is the external assessment and review of schemes. The UK government's Central Point of Expertise for Timber procurement (CPET) is currently undertaking its biennial review of certification schemes.

The review seeks to confirm the schemes' continued compliance with the government's requirements for assurance of legality and sustainability, and involves a detailed evaluation of their systems, but does not look at outcomes and implementation at forest level. This year, for the first time, the review includes an independent technical panel to provide an additional level of scrutiny.

Clearly, the stakes are particularly high for this year's CPET review, given the government's change to it timber procurement policy that will come into force in April 2009. From that point, the policy requires that government buyers will demand timber products only from sustainable and FLEGT-licensed sources. Certification schemes that are only accepted as providing assurance of legality will therefore not be up to the mark.

Defra, supported by CPET, will be preparing practical guidance on implementation of the new policy, and organising workshops to get the message across, in the months leading up to the policy change.