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Changes
at SFF—A Message From the Executive Director
Those of you who have been following SFF's work over the years
know that we have been pioneers in forest certification in both
British Columbia and throughout Canada. From our very first newsletter
in spring of 1994, our certification work has been highlighted
along with our ecosystem-based planning projects.
We've led the way by developing our own high certification standards
that have helped raise the bar for standards being developed regionally
and nationally. We've been active in the Forest Stewardship Council
(FSC) at the international level since I attended the Founding
Assembly in fall of 1993. In 2000, SFF became the first certifier
based in Canada to be accredited by FSC. Our three FSC-certified
woodlots in British Columbia are models of ecosystem-based forest
use, and our 16 FSC chain-of-custody certificates form the beginning
of the critical connections between wood supply and the consumer.
We are proud of our accomplishments in forest and chain-of-custody
certification. However, we've been able to achieve these results
thanks to generous funding from some major foundations. Due to
the current stock market decline and general economic conditions,
our funders find themselves in a difficult situation and it is
doubtful that we can continue to raise the funds necessary to
effectively carry out our responsibilities as an accredited certifier.
Our Board of Directors has recently reached a very difficult decision
to relinquish our FSC accreditation and discontinue our activities
as a certifier, effective in early 2003. SFF feels a strong responsibility
to our certified operations and we are in the process of assisting
each of them to find a new FSC certifying body. We will continue
to help with the monitoring costs of small operations as long
as we are able.
We have been privileged to have a talented and dedicated certification
staff over the past five years who have worked very hard to establish
SFF's place in the certification world. Many thanks to Mark Kepkay,
Cam Brewer, Wendy Vasbinder, Erik Leslie, and Danielle Peloquin
for their contributions to the program.
SFF remains a strong supporter of FSC certification and we will
continue to be an active FSC member. We will remain active participants
in the development of the FSC boreal standards and in the refinement
of the BC standards and will continue to work with environmental
groups on issues surrounding certification. We will continue to
support the Canadian Eco-Lumber Co-Op in its efforts to connect
producers of FSC certified wood and wood products with appropriate
markets. We will work with other ENGOs, First Nations, and social
interests to make the FSC-BC standards work. We will be able to
provide assistance to forest operations as they prepare for FSC
certification. While our role will be different, our commitment
to changes in forest management through FSC certification remains
strong.
SFF's focus as an organization will now be on ecosystem-based
conservation planning and education and training. We have been
building these programs since our beginnings nearly ten years
ago, and we will continue to do so. We will continue to work with
First Nations and rural communities to build strong community
economies that are based on maintaining the integrity of the ecosystems
around them. We will continue to lead the way in defining what
ecosystem-based planning and management mean.
We look forward to keeping you informed about our ongoing work
and thank you for your support over the past ten years.
For the forest,
Susan Hammond, Executive Director
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Standards, and other
documents available for download.
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Photos of our certified operations
for download.
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Details on SFF certified operations.
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Publicly available summaries of
successful timber management certification evaluations.
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Application forms for download.
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Links to other relevant sites.
Thank
you for visiting the SFF Certification Program. If you have any
questions or comments about what you see on our site, please let
us know. Below, you will find our contact information
as well as details about our certification program.
Background
on SFF Certification
The
Silva Forest Foundation has been involved with forest certification
since the early 1990's. In October 1993, SFF was a founding member
of the Forest Stewardship Council at its initial meeting in Toronto.
In 1994, SFF published its first set of standards for ecologically
responsible forest use and timber management. These were the standards
used to guide our first certification in Vernon, B.C. in 1995.
Since that time, the SFF has spent considerable time incorporating
reviews and revising our standards. In 1998, the SFF applied for
accreditation with the Forest Stewardship Council as an FSC certifier.
On March 29th, 2000, we announced that our accreditation
as an FSC certifier was finalized. The SFF is now accredited to
conduct timber management and chain-of-custody certifications
throughout Canada.
What
is Certification?
Certification
is a consumer-driven initiative to identify and label wood products
 originating
in ecologically and socially responsible timber management operations.
Certification allows environmentally conscious consumers to choose
wood products displaying a certified logo. This logo guarantees
that the wood was logged from a forest with a high standard of
timber management and that the logs have been tracked through
the manufacturing process to ensure that there has been no contamination
with uncertified wood.
What
is the FSC?
The
Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) has emerged in Canada, and around
the world, as the most credible and recognizable certification
scheme. The FSC is a broadly supported international body that
accredits and monitors certifiers. The FSC does not conduct certifications,
but rather grants certifying bodies (like the SFF) the right to
certify under the FSC logo. The FSC has achieved worldwide recognition
and support through its strong ties to environmental and social
activist organizations. These organizations support the FSC because
its standards address "on-the-ground" performance of
timber management operations and because it endorses independent
certifications.
Two types of certification are granted under the FSC system. Forest
Management Certification evaluates and certifies that timber
managers are adhering to a rigorous set of ecological and social
standards.
Chain-of-Custody Certification ensures that manufacturers
handling and processing certified timber account for the flow
of certified wood, such that the certified status of a final product
is accurately represented.
The Silva Forest Foundation (SFF) is a FSC accredited certifier.
We are the first Canadian-based FSC certifier and one of the world's
ten accredited timber management and chain-of-custody certifiers.
FSC
Trademark © 1996 Forest Stewardship Council A.C., FSC-SECR-0017
What
is the SFF Certification Program?
Born
of the need to encourage alternatives to clearcut logging and
plantation forestry, SFF eco-certification identifies timber management
operations carrying out ecoforestry. Eco-certification verifies
that these operations are working to protect and maintain ecosystems,
provide a broad range of economic benefits, and foster strong
human communities. The SFF has developed standards for timber
management operations which fulfill FSC requirements, as well
as our own high standards for ecological and social responsibilty.
The SFF also performs chain-of-custody certifications for value-added
manufacturers. In order to promote eco-certified wood, the SFF
is working to connect eco-certified timber management operations
with buyers and manufacturers who want certified inputs. This
type of facilitation is very important to certified timber management
operations as they search out new markets for their wood.
What
does SFF eco-certification entail?
Eco-certification
is a process by which the SFF evaluates ecoforestry operations
against regionally-adapted  SFF
Standards for Ecologically Responsible Timber Management.
The process is flexible in that the standards act as a vision
which applicants work towards over time. Each ecoforestry operation
is evaluated within the unique context of its constraints and
limitations. Applicants must meet entry-level criteria before
certification can be granted, and then are required to show continual
improvement and achieve specific goals over time. These achievements
are designed to move the timber management operation closer to
the vision outlined in the standards.
For instance, a reduction in the allowable annual cut (AAC) is
often necessary, however, it is generally not required immediately.
In most cases, SFF will allow certified operations two to five
years after initial certification to initiate a recalculation
of the AAC. By a similar token, compiling the large amount of
information about forest character (how the forest functioned
prior to European contact) and condition (how the forest looks
today) needed to form the foundation of plans may not be immediately
achievable by many operations. Once again, immediate compliance
is not required with all standards, but there must be a commitment
to fulfillment of the requirements and demonstrated progress toward
eventual compliance.
What
is the cost?
There
are two financial costs involved with certification: the cost
of making changes to the way you carry out timber management or
manufacturing; and the direct cost of having SFF certify your
operation. In both cases, the cost of certification should be
compared with the long-term benefits, both financial and otherwise,
of doing so. In many cases, changes are necessary in order to
meet SFF standards, but these changes are all designed to sustain
or improve the health of the forest - something that will provide
long-term benefits.
In terms of the costs of the SFF certification process, our current
policy is that the time of Certification Program staff may be
subsidized, while we look to the applicant to pay as many of the
external costs as possible. These costs include time and travel
expenses for persons contracted to do scoping and field/site evaluations,
the time of peer reviewers, and the time of certification committee
members. Once an operation is certified there will also be costs
involved with yearly monitoring visits. These costs are variable
and depend on the scale, complexity, and location of the applicant
operation.
SFF wishes to encourage all those sincere in their desire to become
certified. As a result, we are committed to working out a financial
arrangement that is agreeable to both SFF and the applicant. Where
applicants cannot assume the costs outlined above, SFF will work
with them to find a suitable funding arrangement.
Contact
Information
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