Stephanie McDonald reports on timber certification in Australia.
According to the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry (DAFF), there are around 9 million hectares of native and forest plantations in Australia, with 8.7 million hectares certified under the Australian Forestry Standard (AFS) and just over half a million hectares certified under the Forest Stewardship Council. Globally, AFS says only 8 per cent of the world’s forests are certified.
The timber industry is currently attempting to consolidate and improve systems to verify imported wood is sourced from legal forest operations. It is doing this by major timber and forest-based product associations joining forces with the aim of developing a code of conduct. The iniative is being supported and funded by the Australian Government through the DAFF and is being managed by the Timber Development Association (NSW).
Below, BPN speaks to the two main timber certification schemes in Australia — the Australian Forestry Standard and the Forest Stewardship Council — about their schemes.
Kayt Watts - chief executive officer, Australian Forestry Standard
How do you define a well managed forest?
A well managed forest is one that is sustainable — using forest management practices as defined in independently accredited forest management systems. Forest management is awareness and practices that consider the economic, social, environmental and cultural criteria and requirements for wood production.
How can specifiers be assured timber comes from a well managed forest?
The forest management certification provides certification of the raw source to ensure and support sustainable forest management. The priority is to trace its use all the way up the supply chain. This is done with the Forest Management Chain of Custody certification of organisations in the supply chain.
What is the difference between forestry and deforestation?
One thing that people know is that deforestation is a problem — and the numbers speak for themselves. Another thing they don't know is that in Europe, for example, where the majority of forests are certified and sustainably managed, we are actually increasing the area of forests. Forestry is a term that covers all forest activities. Deforestation is why certification needs to be supported and implemented across the globe to counteract bad forest practices.
What is chain of custody according to the AFS? How does a company achieve AFS chain of custody?
The objective of this Chain of Custody (CoC) Standard is to provide all organisations in the wood or forest products certification chain with the minimum criteria and requirements to implement a credible system for the tracking of wood or forest products. CoC covers all intermediate steps such as harvesting, transportation, primary and secondary processing, manufacturing, re-manufacturing, distribution and sales. CoC is an inventory control system that provides a quality assurance standard.
For an organisation to achieve certification they need to comply with the Chain of Custody Standard or guideline. There can be no break in the supply chain — if there is then the product can not have a statement that it is from a certified source. Every organisation in the supply chain must be certified, from the processor, primary and secondary, all the way through to the end consumer.
Are timber companies regularly audited once they achieve certification?
The certification process, while voluntary, is heavily audited to ensure credibility and rigour of the system. Annual surveillance audits and three-year full audits are conducted by independent certification bodies.
Do AFS-certified products count towards Green Star credits?
The new draft of MAT-8 ‘Timber Criteria’ forest certification credit language in the Green Star rating tools opens up the forest certification credit to any forest certification standard that the Green Building Council of Australia recognises as conforming to its forest certification benchmarks. So yes — builders and architects can build a Green Star with PEFC/AFS certified wood.
Carly Bannon - executive officer, Forest Stewardship Council
How do you define a well managed forest?
Responsible forest management means forests are managed in a way that protects the water, soil and wildlife. It means communities, indigenous peoples, forest workers, industry players, forest owners — anyone who is affected by what happens to forests — agree on how the forest will be managed. And it means people can continue to work, live and earn an income from the forest for generations to come.
How can specifiers be assured timber comes from a well managed forest?
FSC certification is internationally recognised for its rigorous environmental and social criteria and it is the only forest certification program supported by local and international environmental groups. All standards are developed though full stakeholder participation and in consensus between the three chambers of membership — environmental, social and economic.
What is chain of custody according to FSC? How does a company achieve FSC chain of custody?
Chain of Custody (CoC) certification applies to manufactures and others who process, transform or trade forest products. The main objective of CoC certification is to ensure that material from FSC certified forests is tracked through the production process. In this way, end customers are able to select FSC certified products knowing there is a system in place to verify the sourcing of the wood.
Every link in the product supply chain that takes legal ownership and wishes to on sell the FSC certified product claim must be CoC certified. FSC does not issue the certificates itself. Companies are evaluated and certified to the FSC CoC standard by independent, third party certification bodies, accredited by FSC. Almost 13,500 FSC Chain of Custody certified companies participate in the FSC system, including 170 in Australia.
Are timber companies regularly audited once they achieve certification?
Yes — a yearly surveillance audit takes place for all FSC certified companies at the forest management level and also for companies that are CoC certified.
Do FSC products count towards Green Star credits?
Yes. For a product to receive points within the Mat 8 Timber credit for FSC certification, a full CoC must exist to the project. That is, all certified wood materials sourced by and used on the specific Green Star project must come from vendors that have a valid Chain of Custody certificate.
