Opportunities to Reduce Carbon and Protect Endangered and HCVF in the Southern U.S.

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FSC-certified forest in Wisconsin Courtesy of
Potlatch Corporation
Opportunities to Reduce Carbon and Protect
Endangered and HCVF in the Southern U.S.
October 28, 2008
Corey Brinkema cbrinkema_at_fscus.org
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Objectives

• Why sourcing wood fiber from well-managed forests
  is so important
• What makes FSC the leadership standard crucial
  differences with industry-based schemes
• Accelerating demand for FSC in US paper market
• Challenges in the Southeast family forest
  certification and carbon management

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Where does your fiber come from?

• Deforestation 20 worlds carbon emissions
• Conversion of natural forests
• Illegal logging
• Critical habitat endangered species
• High conservation values, e.g. old growth
• Other ecosystem services, e.g. clean water
• Native peoples rights
• Local community benefit input, labor

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Forest Stewardship Council

• The global, consensus voice of responsible
  forestry
• All forest stakeholders have a seat at the table
• Environmental, social and economic members
• Independence from industry

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Global foundation, local global impact
3 chamber membership Environmental, Social,
Economic Global North South 268 million acres
certified 10,119 chain-of-custody certificates in
81 countries
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How FSC works

• Set standards
• Forest management
• Chain-of-custody
• Accredit certifying bodies
• Authorize product labelling

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FSC Certification

• Market-based, non-regulatory forest conservation
  tool
• Worlds most rigorous, prescriptive forest
  management standards
• Affords consumers the opportunity to protect
  forest ecosystems and communities, and reward
  responsible forest management
• Third-party verification of forest management
  practices, chain-of-custody, and product
  labeling

Forest Management
Chain of Custody certification
Product Labeling
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FSCs 10 Guiding Principles

• Compliance with Laws and FSC Principles
• Tenure and Use Rights and Responsibilities
• Indigenous Peoples' Rights
• Community Relations and Worker's Rights
• Benefits from the Forest
• Environmental Impact
• Management Plan
• Monitoring and Assessment
• Maintenance of HCV Forests
• Plantations

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What sets FSC apart open, diverse membership and
balanced, consensus-based standards and governance
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How FSC has earned trust

• Balance, democracy and transparency
• Open membership
• Democratic, transparent governance
• Balanced decision making, including standards
• Leading environmental and social NGO support
• Standards and impact

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Standards comparison

• FSCs standards are comprehensive prescriptive
• FSC standards are the only to
• Prevent natural forest conversion to plantations
  and non-forest uses
• Protect high conservation values of forests
• Protect rights of indigenous groups, labor, and
  local communities
• Protect ecosystem functions (e.g. tree retention
  and woody debris in openings)
• Protect threatened species
• Disallow many pesticides, etc.

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Standards comparison
Example How Standards address Forests of
Special Conservation Value
SFI Objectives
SFI Indicators
Tree Farm
CSA
PEFC
From Yale University report to USGBC, February
2008
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From Yale University report to USGBC, February
2008
FSC Principles Criteria
FSC US National Indicators
FSC Canadian Boreal Standard
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HCVF in FSC Southeast Standard

• 9.1.a. Attributes and locations of High
  Conservation Value Forests (HCVF) are determined
  (in consultation with stakeholders and
  scientists) by
• Identification of globally scaled HCVF attributes
  that are present in the forest
• Identification and description of regionally and
  locally scaled HCVF attributes and areas that are
  in the landscape and/or certified forest
• Delineation by maps and habitat descriptions.
• 9.3.a. In intact old-growth forests (see
  Glossary) and un-entered old-growth stands (see
  Glossary), the precautionary principle requires
  that no active management is conducted unless it
  is ecologically necessary to maintain or enhance
  HCVF values, which includes old-growth
  attributes.
• 9.3.b. Management of HCVFs maintains or enhances
  their defining characteristics, their extent, and
  is implemented according to the management plan.
  A summary of the management activities planned
  for these forests is included in the publicly
  available summary of the management plan (see
  7.4.1).
• 9.3.c. Forest owners or managers of HCVFs
  (forests and/or stands) coordinate conservation
  efforts with owners and managers of other HCVFs
  within their landscape.
• 9.3.d Conservation zones are established to
  protect and/or maintain all managed, HCV
  old-growth forests (see Glossary). In these
  forests, the precautionary principle requires
  that no active management is conducted unless it
  is ecologically acceptable and maintains or
  enhances HCVF values. Management of the
  conservation zones is described in the management
  plan and their locations are mapped.

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The Label
The FSC check tree logo identifies FSC-certified
products
This FSC product group contains 100 FSC
certified materials
These FSC Product groups contains a mixture of
FSC certified material and other controlled
sources
This FSC product group contains 100
post-consumer reclaimed material
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Recent market leadership

• US largest catalogers spec FSC (Crate Barrel,
  Williams Sonoma, Limited Brands)
• Scholastic and Staples set FSC recycled
  objectives
• Builders, architects, green bldg programs
• HSBC, largest direct mail credit-card issuer, to
  go 100 FSC by years end
• Walmart Target efforts
• Home Depots FSC sales gt400 million

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Market channels surge in U.S.
2,365 total FSC chain-of-custody certificates
in U.S. which is 10 times the of certificates
of the nearest system (SFI)
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Key Developments for FSC in Paper Market

• FSC Mixed Sources label Volume credit
• Chain of custody growth expands production and
  distribution channels
• Expansion in certified lands 20 growth in 2008
• Expanding outreach and accessibility to
  family-owned forests
• Group certification
• Stepwise approaches toward FSC certification
  (NWFA and FSC Procurement Group)
• Forest carbon valuation

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Family Forests in Southern US, 2003
59 of forestland (51.5 MM ha)3 of owners with
mgmt plans (20 of area)
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FSC and Forest Carbon

• Forest carbon mgmt increasingly viewed as among
  most cost effective climate change mitigation
  strategies
• Carbon accounting standards just beginning
  recognize working forests
• Improved FM or REDD
• FSC seeking recognition in standards - ideal
  vehicle for recognizing other forest values
• Required or value added
• FSC General Assembly motion US pilot projects

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FSC-US confronting challenges
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