Editorial
Editorial by Peter Feilberg, Director of NEPCon When FSC welcomes its members to the 5th ordinary assembly in Cape Town, South Africa, the organisation can also celebrate a truly impressive growth in number of certificates as well as positive impact on the management of the world’s forest.
With more than 100 million hectares of FSC certified forest and more than 11,000 companies trading FSC certified products, FSC has positioned itself as a leading brand for responsible use of forest resources.
Together with the growth, an increasing number of FSC stakeholders have started questioning if FSC is on the right track. Does FSC certification ensure responsible forest management? Are the rules enforced as intended? Does the system provide equal access for the “small and poor” as well as the “big and rich”?
These concerns are clearly reflected in the motions submitted to the FSC General Assembly by the members. Close to 20 pct of the motions are related to accreditation issues, mainly related to the performance of FSC-accredited certification bodies and their ability to enforce the FSC requirements among certified operations.
A side meeting organized by FERN and Greenpeace on Monday showed a surprising level of consensus on key actions to be taken in order to address concerns over certification body performance.
Other key issues
Other key issues are related to the FSC Chain of Custody standard including the FSC Controlled Wood concept and other related requirements. Both the contents of the rules and their enforcement level are questioned.
Access to certification for the small forest holdings is also a frequent topic among the motions submitted by the FSC members. At this stage, most of the FSC certified forests are owned by large organisations such as public agencies and major timber industries. This was hardly the intention when FSC was established.
The 5th FSC general assembly will provide key guidance for FSC on these and other important issues. Hopefully this event can help improve the credibility of the FSC system, ensure more applicable rules and equal access for both big and small all over the world.
