Forest management certification: impacts and research needs

Rusli M., . (2007) Forest management certification: impacts and research needs. [Proceedings Paper]

Forest certification has come a long way since the idea was coceived way back in the early 1990s. Currently there are more than 220 millions hectares of forest areas which have been certified by major certification schemes worldwide and more than 95 of these areas are outside the tropics Vlosky Aguilar Duery 2005. In Malaysia the Malaysian Timber Certification Council MTCC Forest Management Certification Scheme was launched in 2002. As of December 2005 eight State Forest Management Units FMUs namely Selangor Pahang Terengganu Johor Kedah Negeri Sembilan Perak and Kelantan and one private FMU covering a total area of 4.74 million hectares have been assessed and awarded the MTCC Certificate. In addition several FMUs have been certified according to other schemes like the California Scientific Certification System. The MTCC also operates chain-of-custody certification. The first certificate was issued in 2001 and since then more than 80 timber companies have received their chain-of-custody certificates. At the end of 2003 the total exports mainly sawn timber from these companies amounted to nearly 4000 m3 which go to markets in the Netherlands Germany Belgium the United Kingdom and France. The Certificate for Chain-of-Custody assures that the timber products are made from wood from a certified source MTCC 2005. While forest certification has progressed at a very impressive rate at the global level there are loomimg questions which need urgent answers particularly those related to its targeted impacts. The initial intention was to promote sustainable management of forests particularly tropical forests however certification has been found to serve different needs for different forestry enterprises ranging from market access responding to consumer needs improving worker conditions solving land rights among others. It is high time to measure the impacts of certification on sustainable forest management Ozinga 2004 This paper reviews available literature on the impacts of forest certification worldwide and then makes proposals for assessing its impacts on forests in Malaysia. Past studies reveal that forest certification has resulted in improvements in many aspects of forest management system but the impacts on forest conditions have yet to be ascertained. Forest certififcation has brought many positives changes on the ways forests are managed eg. forest planning on environmental conditions eg. management of water on ways various stakeholders are treated like communities and workers eg. conflict resolution workers rights and forest governance eg. community participation. Despite its many positive impacts forest certification has its shortcomings. The two major setbacks of forest certification are on the aspects of costs and market acceptance. Forest certification is a costly endevour particularly to small forestry enterprises and community-based forests. The impacts of forest certification on forests in Malaysia are yet to be examined.

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Abstract

Forest certification has come a long way since the idea was coceived way back in the early 1990s. Currently there are more than 220 millions hectares of forest areas which have been certified by major certification schemes worldwide and more than 95 of these areas are outside the tropics Vlosky Aguilar Duery 2005. In Malaysia the Malaysian Timber Certification Council MTCC Forest Management Certification Scheme was launched in 2002. As of December 2005 eight State Forest Management Units FMUs namely Selangor Pahang Terengganu Johor Kedah Negeri Sembilan Perak and Kelantan and one private FMU covering a total area of 4.74 million hectares have been assessed and awarded the MTCC Certificate. In addition several FMUs have been certified according to other schemes like the California Scientific Certification System. The MTCC also operates chain-of-custody certification. The first certificate was issued in 2001 and since then more than 80 timber companies have received their chain-of-custody certificates. At the end of 2003 the total exports mainly sawn timber from these companies amounted to nearly 4000 m3 which go to markets in the Netherlands Germany Belgium the United Kingdom and France. The Certificate for Chain-of-Custody assures that the timber products are made from wood from a certified source MTCC 2005. While forest certification has progressed at a very impressive rate at the global level there are loomimg questions which need urgent answers particularly those related to its targeted impacts. The initial intention was to promote sustainable management of forests particularly tropical forests however certification has been found to serve different needs for different forestry enterprises ranging from market access responding to consumer needs improving worker conditions solving land rights among others. It is high time to measure the impacts of certification on sustainable forest management Ozinga 2004 This paper reviews available literature on the impacts of forest certification worldwide and then makes proposals for assessing its impacts on forests in Malaysia. Past studies reveal that forest certification has resulted in improvements in many aspects of forest management system but the impacts on forest conditions have yet to be ascertained. Forest certififcation has brought many positives changes on the ways forests are managed eg. forest planning on environmental conditions eg. management of water on ways various stakeholders are treated like communities and workers eg. conflict resolution workers rights and forest governance eg. community participation. Despite its many positive impacts forest certification has its shortcomings. The two major setbacks of forest certification are on the aspects of costs and market acceptance. Forest certification is a costly endevour particularly to small forestry enterprises and community-based forests. The impacts of forest certification on forests in Malaysia are yet to be examined.

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Item Type:	Proceedings Paper
Additional Information:	2 tables.; 15 ref. call number: SD235 M3N277 2007
AGROVOC Term:	FOREST MANAGEMENT
AGROVOC Term:	CERTIFICATION
AGROVOC Term:	RESEARCH
AGROVOC Term:	MALAYSIA
Geographical Term:	MALAYSIA
Depositing User:	Ms. Suzila Mohamad Kasim
Last Modified:	24 Apr 2025 05:13
URI:	http://webagris.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/11070

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