One of the obstacles in certifying forests as sustainably managed has been making it affordable and accessible to small forest owners, which constitute the majority of forest lands around the world. A solution that’s catching on is to combine thousands of individual parcels into a large group, which is then certified as a whole.
The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) recently announced they completed its first large-scale certification of family forests in the world – more than 2 million acres of Wisconsin’s privately owned forestlands. The Wisconsin Group Certificate brings 41,000 parcels and 31,000 landowners into the FSC system. That huge amount of acreage would never have achieved certification if each owner had to apply separately.
Under the Wisconsin Managed Forest Law, the state provides tax benefits and technical assistance to participating landowners in exchange for their commitment to sustainable forest management practices. Only 2% of eligible landowners opted out FSC certification, a strong indication that they clearly understand the benefits of being certified.
Forestry and forestry-related businesses account for 1 in 7 manufacturing jobs in Wisconsin and generate over $20 billion a year in revenue. "The certification of private forest lands enrolled in the Managed Forests program is significant economically as well as environmentally because these private lands provide the majority of timber that fuel’s the state’s forest products industry," says agency Secretary Matthew Frank. "Third party certification not only benefits landowners; it provides a society-wide benefit, an assurance for the citizens of Wisconsin that the state’s forest resources are well-managed and will be available into the future."
In the U.S., non-industrial private forests make up almost 60% of the working forests, with 6.4 million forest owners having holdings smaller than 40 acres. A core part of the landscape, these forests provide habitat and wildlife protection, ecosystem services, and community economic opportunities.
Yet despite the growth in forest certification – more than 254 million acres of forests are now FSC-certified worldwide – family forest owners have found it difficult to obtain and realize the benefits of FSC. This is in part due to the costs and reporting requirements associated with certification.
Group certificates such as Wisconsin’s MFL greatly reduce the cost while providing needed technical assistance, making certification affordable and attainable. This program demonstrates that FSC-certified forestry on all ownership sizes is within practical reach on a large and meaningful scale and sets the stage for others to follow.
FSC-U.S. plans to share Wisconsin’s program as an innovative model in advancing group FSC certification. For 2009, they plan to approve family forest-relevant forest management indicators and guidance, user-friendly communications materials for landowner outreach and education, organize regional supply chains, and coordinate with FSC-International on family forest policies and procedures.
Forest Certification Facts
Worldwide acreage certified: 260.6 million acres
U.S. acreage certified: 29.5 million
Worldwide Chain of custody certificates: 11,111
Worldwide Chain of custody certificates: 2655
Loading...