FSC publishes new Controlled Forest Management Standard V3-0

 Wednesday, January 3, 2024

The new version of FSC-STD-30-010 Controlled Forest Management Standard V3-0 is now published on 01 January 2024 with major changes in the structure and the contents of the standard. This standard specifies basic requirements applicable at the forest management level for organizations to demonstrate that the materials produced and supplied from those management units conform to the requirements specified in the 5 categories of this standard which are as follows:

• Forest management and trade that respects and upholds legality;
• Forest management that respects and upholds customary and human rights, including those that are defined in The ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work;
• Forest management that maintains or enhances social, cultural, environmental, and high conservation values (HCV);
• Forest management that prevents deforestation and degradation;
• Forest management that is free of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO).

This new version replaces Controlled Wood Standard for Forest Management Enterprises V2-0.

The revision of the standard FSC-STD-30-010 was triggered by the Strategy for FSC Mix products and Controlled Wood. The strategy aims at reducing reliance on all forms of Controlled Wood and to enable a stepwise approach towards full forest management certification.

The new version of the standard now uses FSC’s Principles and Criteria as the basis for Controlled Forest Management with over 70% of the International Generic Indicators now included. The new Controlled Forest Management Standard main changes include:

• Title of the standard and the 5 controlled forest management categories are updated.
• Non-Timber Forest Products (NTFPs) are now included in the scope of controlled forest management.
• To make Controlled Forest Management a stepwise approach toward full forest management certification, a subset of FSC-STD-60-004 International Generic Indicators (IGIs) have been adopted to regulate controlled forest management. Controlled Forest Management certificate holders would conform with approximately 73% of IGIs, thereby facilitating a smoother transition toward stepping up to the locally adapted Forest Stewardship Standards.
• In countries where an approved Forest Stewardship Standard exists, CFM certificate holders are required to demonstrate conformity with the corresponding indicators of the Forest Stewardship Standard instead of the corresponding International Generic Indicators.
• The standard is now aligned with FSC-POL-01-007 Policy to Address Conversion by including relevant specific indicators.
• The restriction that CFM can only be maintained for one certification cycle has been added.
• Specific provisions for Small or Low Intensity Managed Forests (SLIMFs) have not been included, since SLIMF producers now have a better suited route to full forest management certification through the Continuous Improvement Procedure.

A new output claim (FSC CFM) has been introduced to incentivize controlled forest management, and to distinguish it from forest products sourced as CW based on FSC-STD-40-005 Requirements for Sourcing FSC Controlled Wood.

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Tags: forest management, forest management standard, FSC, wood, wood and panel, woodworking industry