Forests need to be managed responsibly for their biodiversity to avoid damage to the environment
Forests need to be managed responsibly for their biodiversity to avoid damage to the environment

Forests are an incredibly rich natural resource, but it is imperative that they are managed properly and responsibly.

It is vital that they are managed for their biodiversity and not just their worth because when poorly managed, forestry is damaging to the environment and in the worst case, destructive.

This year (2011) has been the United Nations’ (UN) International Year of Forests, with the FSC and WWF supporting this with the Love Your Forests campaign.

In Australia there are a number of private organisations that carry out Forest certification audits in compliance with one of two certifications schemes from the Australian Forestry Standard and Forest Stewardship Council.

Australian Forest Certification Scheme (AFCS)

This Australian Forestry Standard (AFS) is a not for profit public company that owns the standard development functions and manages the elements of the AFCS. This scheme was developed via a nationwide process involving representatives of the Australian community, industry and government and tasks itself to:

  • Promote sustainable forest management in Australia
  • Support and maintain the development of the AFS and other related or complementary standards
  • Maintain accreditation as a Standards Development Organisation
  • Support and facilitate the use of the AFS and related standards for forestry certification within Australia; and
  • Seek mutual recognition for the AFS internationally
Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)

The FSC is an international system of forest accreditation that utilises two interim standards:

  • The Rainforest Alliance-Smartwood Interim Standard for Australia: and
  • The Soil Association-Woodmark Interim Standard for Australia - based on internationally developed standards
FSC’s mission is to promote environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable management of forests in Australia and countries supplying the Australian forest products market.

Both the AFCS and FSC schemes issue chain-of-custody certificates.

In addition to Australia’s responsible forestry schemes, the WWF (World Wildlife Fund) also has a Global Forest and Trade Network (GFTN) scheme that partners with businesses to promote responsible management of forests as well as the responsible purchase of certified timber.

Members of the GFTN commit to tracing purchased timber and paper products back to the forest it came from originally. This helps to identify timber that comes from unknown or unacceptable sources and move towards products are from credibly certified forests.

14.12.2011