Experiences of a Forest Owners’ Cooperative in using FSC forest certification as an environmental strategy

Yusuhara Forest Owners’ Cooperative (YFOC) in Kochi Prefecture in Japan received its forest management certification from the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) in 2000. YFOC is recognised as the resource manager of its members’ forests, and they were the first organisation to gain such certification in Japan. With the continuous efforts of selling FSC certified wood in the domestic housing construction market, YFOC has substantially increased their timber sales in recent years. It is a noteworthy event in Japanese small-scale forestry, which has been struggling with declining economic performance for many years. This paper analyses the detail of forestry activities and changes which occurred in YFOC after certification by FSC. An interesting effect of increasing economic performance is found to have come from an unexpected direction. It is concluded that the FSC certification system is a possible tool to revitalise Japanese small-scale forestry as well as obtain favourable environmental outcomes.     

Ecology-oriented House Builders and FSC-certified Domestic Timber in Japan

Forest owners’ cooperatives are one of the leading organizations in the forest sector in Japan. Yusuhara Forest Owners’ Cooperative (YFOC) in Kochi Prefecture is one of such examples, which obtained FSC forest certification as a resource manager of the forest, which belongs to more than 1,200 small-scale forest owners. YFOC has successfully expanded sales of FSC-labeled timber in recent years. Most of their certified timber is purchased by house builders in urban cities including Osaka. This paper analyzes who desires FSC-certified timber from YFOC and why. Six case studies are reported, which reveal that ecology-oriented house builders are interested in using FSC certified timber because of traceability of the timber, price advantage from direct dealing, environmentally sound forest management of YFOC, and relatively high quality of the timber.     

基于森林认证的环境影响评估应用指南研究

近年来森林认证在我国取得了较大进展,逐步成为我国森林资源管理制度的有益补充。森林认证的要求主要涉及环境、经济和社会等方面。现有的环境影响评估指南或操作规范主要针对建设项目,我国森林经营单位在开展森林认证的过程中,普遍面临着对环境影响评估的步骤、方法不了解和缺乏实践操作指南的问题。文中以国际、国内森林认证标准关于森林经营环境影响评估的具体要求为出发点,认为森林经营单位的日常环境影响评估包括总体评估和针对特定经营活动的评估,阐述了2类评估的具体内容及应评估的要素,指出在评估时应考虑的问题,在此基础上提出减缓负面环境影响的措施建议,以期为我国森林经营单位开展营林活动环境影响快速评估提供可操作的应用技术指南。     

The effect of participatory forest management on the livelihood and poverty of settlers in a rehabilitation program of degraded forest in Bangladesh

The sal forest is the only plainland forest in Bangladesh, and is of national economic and environmental importance. High population and ever increasing poverty has stimulated exploitation of the forest alarmingly and brought it near extinction. In facing this situation, the Bangladesh Forest Department implemented a participatory management approach, involving the householders living in and around the forests, for forest maintenance and protection. This study examines the effectiveness of practicing participatory forestry on the settlers’ livelihood in the encorached area of the sal forest. The settlers were given degraded and encroached forest land through the program. Two major social forestry models — namely agroforestry and woodlots — are included in the study. Participation in the resettlement increased household income, employment opportunities and financial and non-land assets. It was found that the participatory management regime could attain the sustainability of the forest and accelerate the standard of settlers’ livelihood, hence the program is an efficient management option towards sustainability of the forest resources. These findings suggest that there is a role for extending the approach to rehabilitate other degraded and encroached forest lands in Bangladesh.     

Factor analysis of risk-taking behavior in forest work

In this study, the data obtained by a questionnaire survey were analyzed to examine the difference with the type of occupation, consistency in each situation, the inductive and restraint factors of the risk-taking behavior in the forest work to elucidate the risk-taking behavior in forest work. The results showed that (1) the Kyushu Forest Cooperative Association’s staff members underestimate the risk, but have a strong recognition of “law observance,” (2) the supervisor or instructor has low consciousness of risk, (3) as the inductive factor of behavior, one’s own benefit in the daily situation is given the highest priority, but risk is the most important factor in situations concerning forest work and forest machine operation and handling, irrespective of the accuracy of the risk evaluation, (4) as the restraint factor of behavior, although there is a difference in the risk evaluation whether large or small, risk is given priority by all workers, and (5) the dare probability of each risk-taking behavior is highly correlated with the risk evaluation of the behavior. Among others, low consciousness of the supervisor or instructor concerning safety management is pointed out as a main factor in worker’s accidents, and reconsideration of the relationship between the supervisor or instructor and workers is necessary.     

瑞典林业与森林认证

面对全球森林资源匮乏,生态环境日益恶化的问题,保护环境、保护森林已成为人类的共识。国际社会、各国政府及非政府组织为实现森林可持续经营提出了一些倡议,并采取了一系列的行动。森林认证正是在这种背景下,由非政府组织作为一种促进森林可持续经营的市场机制提出来的。文中从介绍瑞典林业经营和森林认证现状入手,分析了瑞典现行森林认证体系产生的背景、服务的群体及其特点,提出了我国目前开展森林认证工作需要解决的问题及相关的建议,论述了开展森林认证对我国实施天然林保护及可持续经营的意义。     

Forest Certification as an Instrument for Improved Forest Management within Small-scale Forestry

Since early 1990 ties, Swedish forest land is increasingly becoming certified. Today all major forest owners have joined the Swedish FSC-standard (Forest Stewardship Council), while small-scale forest owners preferably are joining the PEFC scheme (Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification). With the overall aim of gaining a better insight into which small-scale forest owners that have decided to take up on forest certification, and how their forest management practices have been affected by this choice, two set of data has been analyzed; one consisting Data Base of Forest Owner Analysis (DBFOA) data relating to approximately 14,000 properties whereof 1955 were found to be certified, and the other one including data from a follow up questionnaire sent out only to owners with certified forest properties. Results show that certified and non-certified forest properties are managed differently and in particular that harvesting on certified properties has increased. Differences in management seem to be connected principally to the fact that forest owners from generally more active sub-groups embrace forest certification requirements. Moreover, our results shows that economic motives for joining a certification scheme are just as prevalent as environmental motives and a majority of forest owners regard certification as something that favors profitability rather than consider it to restrict economic yield.     

FSC标准与中国法规之间的冲突分析

森林管理委员会(FSC)认证体系是目前市场认可度最高的, 受到非政府环保组织和贸易组织支持的全球森林认证体系。近年来, 由于市场作用和政策支持等因素, FSC认证在中国迅速发展。然而各个认证机构在中国开展森林经营认证过程中, 发现FSC标准与中国的法规之间存在着几个方面的冲突。这些冲突是导致国内部分森林经营企业难以通过FSC认证的重要原因。作者通过参与和调查国内多个森林经营企业的FSC认证工作, 将具有普遍性的冲突进行了归纳和分析, 为中国森林企业获得FSC认证提供借鉴。     

Treefall gaps of certified,conventionally managed and natural forests as regeneration sites for Neotropical timber trees in northern Honduras

Forest certification programmes promote sustainable management of the world's forests. Certification can be given to a forest management system that fulfils certain environmental, social and economic criteria.     

木兰林管局森林认证面临的主要问题及其建议

论述了森林认证的产生背景、概念、目的以及森林认证在我国的开展情况,并结合森林认证在木兰林管局的试点工作,分析了森林认证工作对森林可持续经营的影响,指出了实施森林认证存在的问题与实施建议。     

森林认证对森林可持续经营的影响及其在中国的实践

开展森林认证是促进我国森林管理与国际接轨并实现森林可持续经营的有效途径。文中概述了森林认证的发展概况以及森林认证对森林可持续经营的影响,并以我国吉林省经过认证的森林经营企业为例,通过对森林认证前后的对比,以及与未经过认证的国有林业局对比,分析森林认证对经济、社会和环境等方面的具体影响。结果表明,森林认证的开展在经济上可行,使社会受益,对环境友好,能够促进森林可持续经营。文中还对我国开展森林认证工作提出了具体措施建议。     

Landowner-Driven Sustainable Forest Management and Value-Added Processing

Summary

The Massachusetts Woodlands Cooperative, LLC (MWC) is working to help members conduct sustainable forestry of the highest standards while increasing financial returns from harvest activities. The forests of Massachusetts, the third most densely populated state in the United States, are threatened. Decades of high grading and the threat of forest conversion to alternative use present challenges for maintaining a forested landscape. Despite being 60% forested, Massachusetts imports approximately 98% of the wood fiber that its citizens consume.

The Massachusetts Woodlands Cooperative is a forest management, processing, and marketing cooperative organized by and on behalf of forest landowners in western Massachusetts. An umbrella group certification protocol was developed to provide cost-effective forestland management certification. Members benefit from cooperative management of harvest operations, above-market stumpage payments, and value-added processing and production including marketing traditionally low-value and small-diameter material. The added revenue from developing these new markets is used to fund timber, wildlife habitat, recreation, and other sustainable forest management activities. The cooperative works in partnership with local wood-processing businesses to spur community economic development. This study on cooperatives may be a successful example of sustainable forest management that can be applied in other regions with private land ownerships.     

政府在森林认证中的作用探讨

森林认证作为促进森林可持续经营的市场机制, 在世界范围内取得了快速发展。它由非政府组织发起, 而政府作为参与方之一在大多数国家森林认证的发展中发挥了重要作用, 包括提供森林认证所需的法规政策环境、创建森林认证体系、规范和开发认证林产品市场、制定鼓励政策和确保公平合理的国际贸易规则等。作为一种市场机制, 森林认证强调各利益方的共同参与, 并依靠市场运作。因此, 认证需要与政府保持一定的独立性。文中对各国政府在森林认证中的作用进行阐述, 并探讨我国政府在森林认证中应发挥的作用。     

我国小规模联合森林认证效果调查与分析

联合认证是森林认证中一种常见的认证模式。文中根据对7家开展FSC小规模联合认证的营林组织进行调查的结果,总结出小规模组织在成立联合体、体系文件、内审、传统权利、环境影响、生态系统保护、化学农药使用、森林经营规划以及森林经营中的产销监管链9个方面普遍存在潜在不符合项;通过对调查结果的分析找出我国发展小规模联合森林认证存在的问题,并提出促进我国集体林小规模组织森林认证工作的建议。     

Why Brazilian companies are certifying their forests?

The paper examines the two forest certification schemes in Brazil, the Brazilian Program of Forest Certification (Cerflor) and the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), from the private sector perspective. The main focus is to test the relevance of three mechanisms—market, learning, and signaling—suggested by Overdevest and Rickenbach (2006), to explain forest certification adoption by Brazilian companies. Furthermore, companies' familiarity with certification systems, external influences on pursuing forest certification, and companies' intention to recertify their forests are investigated. An exploratory factor analysis (EFA) suggests that signaling and learning mechanisms lead to better and more transparent forest management, explaining the movement towards certification, but market incentives do not play an important role in the adoption of forest certification. An importance and performance analysis (IPA) demonstrates that companies do not see any return in terms of a better price for certified products; however, certificate holders indicated overall high satisfaction with market access. Interestingly, a high performance was found for non-economic benefits such as public confidence, improvement of forest management and practices, improvement of management systems and performance, self-discovery of non-conformance, and better public, landowner, and supplier communication. International consumers and shareholders were considered the most important groups influencing companies to seek certification and FSC was reported to be the most familiar scheme. Generally, companies were pleased with certification and indicated their intention to recertify.     

Analyzing Strategies to Enhance Small and Low Intensity Managed Forests Certification in Europe using SWOT-ANP

Small forest holders own approximately 55 % of European forests. Forest certification can effectively support smallholders in environmental and socio-economic terms and increasing their access to certification is a priority for all the certification systems. With the aim of gaining a better insight into the smallholder certification scenario, this study identifies and analyzes the main factors influencing the diffusion of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) smallholder certification in Europe. Potential strategies to help FSC meet the requirement of smallholders—and as a consequence enhance their access to certification—are pointed out. First, European FSC certification reports were reviewed; second, a Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats-Analytic Network Process (SWOT-ANP) analysis was applied. The review of the reports shows that FSC certification allows achieving substantial environmental and social improvements, making a valuable contribution to ordinary management. The SWOT-ANP analysis reveals a common awareness that the FSC scheme has been customized for the small-scale forestry over the last years—indeed, the certificates issued annually are increasing—but the need to make further progress and to provide adequate technical-managerial support to smallholders during all certification phases still emerge. Results from the economic analysis highlight that certification may be a good opportunity to increase commercial relationships and exchanges, by facilitating the entrance of certified products to dedicated high-value markets. Findings also highlight social and environmental shortcomings concerning forest workers conditions and management practices.     

森林认证的现状与发展趋势

森林认证出现于20世纪90年代初,10年来,森林认证在全球范围内取得了快速的发展。文中介绍了森林认证的起源和发展现状,指出了森林认证的发展趋势,并对我国开展森林认证提出了建议。     

森林认证对林业政策与管理的影响分析

森林认证作为一种市场激励手段和"软政策"工具,林业政策法规作为一种强制性的"硬政策"工具,这两方面在促进森林可持续经营和加强林业管理方面具有较强的互补性。目前,森林认证已发展成为加强林业政策管理的一种新工具,包括促进各方对林业问题和林业政策的讨论、推动国家法规政策的制定和实施、改进公有林的管理、提高森林可持续经营的意识和能力以及加强有关森林可持续经营的国际政策协商等。文章分析了森林认证与林业法规政策的关系,并对森林认证在推动包括我国在内的林业政策管理中的作用进行了探讨。     

森林经营认证评价指标体系的探讨——以黄丰桥国有林场为例

文章通过借鉴国内外森林经营认证已有的研究成果,归纳总结了影响森林经营认证的主要因素,并在此基础上建立了国有林场森林经营认证评价指标体系,提出了森林经营认证综合指数的新概念。     

森林认证的动力机制与相关推动政策和措施

森林认证以市场为依托, 促进森林可持续经营, 已成为推进全球环境、经济和社会持续发展的重要手段之一。文中根据世界森林认证发展现状与趋势, 解析森林认证的动力机制, 着重介绍了当前各方推动森林认证的政策和措施, 并提出了推动我国森林认证发展的政策建议。