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Sustainable Forestry and Certification Watch

¡¾Jan.15, 2002¡¿

Sustainable Forestry and Certification Watch
Forest Certification: 2001 Year in Review

Montreal, CN -- Jan. 14 2002 -- Forest management certification underwent unprecedented changes in the year 2001 says the independent organization Certification Watch. The group's new report, "Forest Certification: 2001 Year in Review," analyses the key developments that are shaping the practice of forest certification in North America, Europe and world-wide.

"Forest certification evolved substantially in the past year. It is increasingly becoming a standard practice among forest products corporations, particularly in North America and Europe" says Jean-Pierre Kiekens, Editor of the international newsletter Forest Certification WatchTM. "With precise, factual, up to date information about all the key forest certification developments, the report Forest Certification: 2001 Year in Review represents an essential reference tool for decision makers in the forest products, retail and other related sectors."

The new report will be released at the upcoming Certification Watch Conference to be held on January 31-February 1 at the Ritz Carlton in Montreal, Canada. This conference on "Forest Certification and Corporate Responsibility," will feature prominent speakers from leading corporations in the area of forest certification, high level representatives from the most important certification programs and influential experts in forest certification - see the conference details at www.CertificationWatchConference.org.

The report is based on articles published in the newsletter Forest Certification WatchTM throughout 2001. For North America, the report covers, among many other developments, the revised Sustainable Forestry Initiative certification program, the Canadian Standards Association new forest products labelling program, partnerships between the World Wildlife Fund and Tembec Inc. and between the Forest Stewardship Council and the Ontario Government in Canada, announcements of wood procurement policies by U.S. corporations, and adjustments made to The Home Depot's environmental wood purchasing practices.

The report analyses European developments on a county-by-country level, and examines the rise of the Pan-European Forest Certification to become the largest certification program in the world by area. The report provides coverage of key developments in Oceania and the tropics. It analyzes the elaboration of a national forestry standard in Australia and the certification of fast growing plantations in New Zealand and Brazil. It reports on forest certification developments in leading tropical producers such as Indonesia and Malaysia, including issues associated with natural forest and teak plantations certificates.

Comprehensive coverage is provided on several comparison reports of certification systems that were released in 2001 and the ensuing response and criticisms. The debate over mutual recognition of certification systems, and the policies and involvement of the World Bank, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization and the International Tropical Timber Organization are all investigated.

The report, totalling nearly hundred pages, is a wealth of information and is a must-read for decision makers dealing with forest certification, forest products' procurement and related issues. Also available are the previous Year in Review reports, which were published for the years 1998, 1999 and 2000.

To order call toll free at 1-877-273 5777 or order online at www.CertificationWatch.org.

CONTACT: Sustainable Forestry and Certification Watch - tel: +1-514-273 5777 or toll free: 877-2735777 (North America only), fax: +1-514-277 4448 - e-mail: sfcw@sfcw.org - www.CertificationWatch.org - PO Box 48122, Montr