Through voluntary market-based forest certification programs, forest companies in Canada are well positioned to provide their customers with the assurance that the products they buy come from sustainably managed forests.

Governments in Canada strongly support forest certification as a tool in the demonstration of our sustainable forest management record but do not endorse one system over another. In Canada it is recognized that the Canadian Standards Association’s Sustainable Forest Management Standard (CSA), the Forest Stewardship Council Standards (FSC) and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), all contribute to sustainable forest management.

Canada now leads the world in third party sustainable forest management certification, with more certified lands than any other country. Certification complements Canada’s comprehensive and rigorous forest management laws and regulations, and is embraced by companies as a way of further improving their sustainable forest management practices and providing marketplace assurances. As of December 2006, Canada has 123.75 million hectares certified to one of the three programs: CSA, FSC and the SFI.

All three programs require independent, third-party audits where auditors measure the planning, procedures, systems and performance of on-the-ground forest operations against predetermined standards. They all require annual surveillance audits and public disclosure of findings through audit reports, and engagement with affected Aboriginal people to ensure Aboriginal knowledge and tradition are respected.

They all also reinforce the basics of good forest management by ensuring that harvested areas are reforested, that laws are obeyed and that no unauthorized logging takes place. And they all go beyond timber production by ensuring the conservation of biological diversity, the maintenance of wildlife habitat, soils and water resources, and the sustainability of timber harvesting — all of which promote sustainable forest management.

Many companies in Canada also are certified under the ISO 14001 Environmental Management System. This system provides an excellent environmental management system foundation for implementing forestry standards and for tracking performance against set targets and objectives.

The Forest Products Association of Canada is the first trade association in the world to require of member companies that as a condition of membership they certify all lands under their management to one of CSA, FSC or SFI. FPAC members, who operate on a vast majority of Canada’s working forest, reached 95 per cent of this goal by fall 2005.

Canada ’s contribution to global forest certification is significant. With CSA and SFI endorsed by PEFC, certification in Canada to these two standards now accounts for 55% of PEFC certification worldwide. With the recent growth of FSC certification in Canada, Canada also accounts for approximately 25% of FSC certification worldwide.

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