Improving Communications to Increase Nonindustrial Private Forest Landowner (NIPF) Participation in Forest Certification Programs: A Case Study in Arkansas, USA

Despite the socioeconomic and ecological significance of the 10.4 million acres of forestland owned by nonindustrial private forest (NIPF) landowners across Arkansas (approximately 58% of forestland in the state), only 5% of this land is certified through the American Tree Farm System. As such, understanding how to improve the reach and content of communications to NIPF landowners is vital for expanding certification participation and subsequent improvement of forest management in Arkansas and throughout the southern United States. To explore current and optimal communications to increase NIPF participation, we employed Berlo’s source–message–channel–receiver (SMCR, 1960) model to analyze survey data collected from Arkansas NIPF landowners regarding their familiarity with, interest in, and information sources for forest certification programs. Our results indicate that NIPF landowners have a relatively low familiarity with certification programs and a low interest in adopting a certification program regardless of personal involvement throughout the certification process, the transparency of on-sight inspections to the public, and the requirements of forest management plans. However, positive correlations were found between self-reported familiarity with certification programs and the perceived usefulness of various information sources, indicating that communications to NIPF landowners have the ability to be influential. Furthermore, the results showed that the greatest perceived benefits to landowners were improved timber growth and health, better management actions, and environmentally-friendly timber harvesting, whereas the most concerning perceived drawbacks were increased record-keeping and paperwork as well as management costs. These findings will offer actionable insights into future messaging campaigns and provide directions for new approaches of reaching NIPF landowners to increase their participation in forest certification.

NÚMEROS ATUAIS DA CERTIFICAÇÃO FLORESTAL NO BRASIL

A certificação florestal é um importante instrumento de gestão e garantia da sustentabilidade no setor florestal. Para avaliar o estado atual da certificação é necessário se ter números atualizados e detalhados. Este estudo visou analisar os números atuais da certificação florestal no Brasil. Para a análise, foram utilizados dados disponibilizados nas plataformas da internet dos sistemas FSC® (Forest Stewardship Council) e Cerflor/PEFC® (Sistema Brasileiro de Certificação Florestal/Plan for the Endorsement of Forest Certification Schemes), considerando os sistemas e as certificadoras, os tipos de certificação, a localização e os produtos certificados. A maior área florestal certificada no Brasil atualmente é pelo sistema FSC. Há mais florestas plantadas certificadas do que nativas. Minas Gerais é o Estado com a maior área de manejo certificada, tanto pelo FSC quanto pelo Cerflor/PEFC. Imaflora e SCS são as certificadoras com mais certificados e áreas certificadas de manejo florestal. O produto predominante declarado pelas unidades de manejo florestal certificadas é a madeira em toras. Há um número muito superior de certificações CoC (cadeia de custódia) pelo FSC do que pelo CERFLOR. A maioria das certificações CoC refere-se a indústrias de produtos madeireiros, notadamente materiais de papel e de madeira serrada. As certificadoras mais atuantes em CoC são Imaflora, SCS e Control Union. Os números da certificação florestal em manejo florestal no Brasil ainda são modestos, considerando a dimensão de sua cobertura florestal. O mesmo pode ser dito em relação ao número de indústrias certificadas em cadeia de custódia. Por isso há um amplo espaço para crescimento.

On the way to balance of forestry land use of Ukraine: ecological-and-economic aspect

Purpose. The purpose of this work is to investigate the ecological-and-economic aspect of certain factors to ensure the balanced use of forest lands; develop proposals for the formation of the basis for the development of sustainable forestry. Methodology / approach. We used the following methods: dialectical method of cognition for the analysis of scientific works of scientists concerning problems of balanced use of lands of forestry purpose; method of analogies (transfer of patterns of development of one process with certain amendments to another process or territory); statistical (based on quantitative indicators that allow drawing conclusions about the pace of the process); comparative analysis (comparison of indicators of forest resources and their use for Ukraine and Poland); correlation analysis (identification of factors on which the forecast significantly depends; clarification of relationships, their relationship with the predicted phenomenon under the influence of certain factors), graphical, abstract-logical (theoretical generalizations and formulation of conclusions). The information base of the study is the data of the Global Assessment of Forest Resources of FAO 2020, the data of the Monitoring of Land Relations in Ukraine, the reporting of the State Forest Agency of Ukraine, the data of the Forest Stewardship Council®. Based on the annual reports of the State Forestry Agency of Ukraine, some indicators of the report of 288 state forestries for 2018–2020 are consolidated in terms of 24 regional departments of forestry and hunting. Results. In the dynamics for 2018–2020, changes in the volume of forest resources, forest reserves, biomass, and carbon density were studied; the indicators of forest resources and their use for Ukraine and Poland are compared. The volumes of forest certification by regions of Ukraine are estimated. The relationships between capital investments in forestry production and the price of sold wood, the volume of net income of state forestry, the amount of profit, the degree of depreciation of fixed assets; between the tax burden on state forestries and financial stability was studied. Based on the assessment of the relationships and changes in individual indicators, the need to update the fixed assets of forest enterprises through the improvement of the investment instrument is justified. The results of this study are a summary of evidence on the environmental and economic aspects of the impact of certain factors on the sustainable use of forest lands, which in turn forms the scientific basis for achieving the goals of state environmental policy of Ukraine. Originality / scientific novelty. The studied interdependencies between the statistical characteristics of individual indicators of forestry land use made it possible to identify factors to ensure balanced use of forestry lands. It is substantiated that reforestation, forest certification, renewal of fixed assets of forestry enterprises through the improvement of the investment instrument, optimization of the tax burden of forestry activities are favorable factors to ensure the balance of forestry land use. It is proved that the excessive tax burden is a deterrent to the balanced use of forest lands. It is proposed to alleviate the tax burden on forestry activities by reducing the rate of deduction of net income of state forestry enterprises, eliminating the problem of double taxation of the forest fund, which under limited budget funding will allow state forestries to accumulate their own financial resources to ensure sustainable land use. Practical value / implications. The main results of the study can be used to: (I) structure the factors of sustainable use of forest lands; (II) defining the goals of sustainable development when developing the strategy of forestry enterprises; (III) analysis of the achievement of sustainable development goals at the national level, defined by the Basic Principles (strategy) of the state environmental policy of Ukraine for the period up to 2030. The results of the study can be used both at the level of forest management entities, as well as at the regional and national levels, to make management decisions on the implementation of measures that ensure the balanced use of forest land. Also, the causal links between indicators that arise from the response of indicators to certain factors open up new opportunities for forest management planning. These results can provide important information for the protection and use of forest resources in all regions of Ukraine.

Forestry Best Management Practices and Conservation of Aquatic Systems in the Southeastern United States

State-approved forestry best-management practices (BMPs) are a practice or combination of practices that, when properly implemented, effectively prevent or reduce the amount of nonpoint source (NPS) pollution entering waterbodies, such as sediment. Although BMPs are voluntary in most states in the southeastern United States (U.S.), forest landowners operating under the auspices of a forest certification system are required to use BMPs, and forest-certified wood procurement organizations also require loggers who supply them with fiber to use BMPs. Current implementation rates are, on average, 93.6% throughout the southeastern U.S. We conducted a literature review to better understand potential effectiveness of BMPs to conserve aquatic resources and species in the southeastern U.S. Our review focuses on how BMPs reduce NPS pollutants, particularly sediment, fertilizers, and herbicides; how BMPs are monitored throughout the southeastern U.S.; and current implementation rates. Additionally, we discuss how state BMP monitoring programs, coupled with participation in forest certification programs that require routine third-party audits, provide assurance to federal and state agencies that BMPs protect aquatic resources and species. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has recognized that working forests where management activities implement BMPs represent a clear, actionable, and scientifically sound approach for conserving at-risk aquatic species. However, there is a data gap in directly linking BMPs to the conservation of aquatic resources. Given the high diversity of aquatic species in the southeastern U.S., it is important to better understand this potential linkage.

Territory, Private Authority, and Rights

Sustainability certification initiatives seek to harness the power of transnational corporations to reform environmentally damaging practices around the world. This amounts to a kind of de-territorialized authority that governs through global markets rather than nation-states. Yet in certifying land and reforming its uses, sustainable agriculture and forestry initiatives confront a resource that is deeply tied to state sovereignty while potentially also being claimed by Indigenous peoples. This chapter asks what happens as transnational sustainability standards meet the nationally rooted and contested governance of land. It examines the place of “free and prior informed consent” for the use of Indigenous land in the leading sustainable agriculture and forestry initiatives, and it highlights the significance of the state and civil society through a brief comparison of forest certification in Indonesia and China. Further research should look not only within the world of sustainability standards but also to parallel questions about land rights in projects focused on timber legality and payment for ecosystem services.

Challenges for FSC Forest Certification: Audits in the Context of Pandemic COVID-19

The COVID-19 pandemic caused economic difficulties for companies in forestry as well as significant issues for entities dealing with Chain of Custody (CoC) certification. Global certification schemes, like FSC and PEFC, based on some preventive provisions in their procedural frame, developed new approaches and derogations to maintain quality evaluation and the power of standards. Arising from COVID-19 restrictions, postponed audits (and the extension of the validity of existing certifications) or remote auditing became increasingly common. Based on a survey applied to companies that had CoC FSC audits in 2020, this study aimed at evaluating the perceptions of companies regarding the audits performed under COVID pandemic procedural derogations, along with other research objectives like the continuous investigation of certification drivers or advantages. Companies indicated that the certification bodies explained the characteristics of pandemic-adapted audits and conducted risk assessments before choosing the adapted approach. Almost half of the companies perceived significant differences between the on-site previous audits and the audits performed during the pandemic due to the imposed restrictions and adapted approaches. Additionally, companies found that hybrid or remote audits are not so efficient, and for the future on-site audits are preferred. The study concluded that making the auditing procedures less interactional is not yet a sufficiently mature approach; there is a clear need for better procedures, building online tools usage capacity, to better communicate the specificity of such procedures better, and to better balance the online evaluations with on-site assessments.

Professionals’ Feedback on the PEFC Fair Supply Chain Project Activated in Italy after the “Vaia” Windstorm

In the fall of 2018, the “Vaia” windstorm grounded around 8.5 million m3 of timber in northeastern Italy. Soon after, the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) Italy activated a project called “fair supply chain” to promote the purchase of timber from the damaged areas at a reasonable price. The initiative was addressed at forest owners, forest and processing enterprises, retailers, and supporting organizations. This study reports the results of a survey performed to assess the effectiveness of the project two years after its launch. The survey, in the form of a questionnaire submitted to all adhering organizations, investigated different aspects such as motivations for adherence to the project, satisfaction with the project, sale of the labeled material, and promotion of the specific label. The results provide a detailed outline of the above aspects. Through the various findings, the project is perceived as effective in supporting the region, enhancing an organizations’ image, and limiting price fall. Yet, further efforts should be aimed at increasing networking and business opportunities. Some recommendations are also offered for similar projects in the future, as forest disturbances are increasing worldwide in frequency and intensity due to climate change.