Forest Stewardship Council

FSC step-by-step guide

Good practice guide to meeting FSC certification requirements
for biodiversity and High Conservation Value Forests in Small
and Low Intensity Managed Forests

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FSC Technical Series No. 2009 - T002

Forest Stewardship Council

The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is an independent, non-governmental, not for profit
organization established to promote the responsible management of the worlds forests. It
provides standard setting, trademark assurance and accreditation services for companies and
organizations interested in responsible forestry.

Products carrying the FSC label are independently certified to assure consumers that they
come from forests that are managed to meet the social, economic and ecological needs of
present and future generations.

Authors

Dawn Robinson, Perpetua George, Christopher Stewart and Tim Rayden

Editors

FSC-SECR-0002 Cover photo credits: Main photo FSC / Juan Carlos Reyes; small photos left to right Milan Reska, Milan Reska, Dawn Robinson, Marie Mbolo
Frank Katto

Produced by

FSC International Center GmbH

1st edition, March 2009

Funded by GEF through UNEP, coordinated by CIFOR and supported by ProForest

Forest Stewardship Council A.C.

This work is copyright protected. The FSC logo is registered by FSC A.C. and pro-
tected. With the exception of the FSC logo, the graphics and text in this publication
may be reproduced in whole or in part, provided that is it not sold or used commer-
cially and its source is acknowledged.
A.C.AllAllrights
FSC,A.C.
FSC, FSC-SECR-0002
reserved.
rightsreserved

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Geschftsfhrer | Director: Andre de Freitas Handelsregister | Commercial register: Bonn HRB12589
 Acknowledgements

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The FSC would like to acknowledge and thank Dawn Robinson, Perpetua George, Christo-
pher Stewart, and Tim Rayden from ProForest, for their support, availability and valuable work
in producing this guide on behalf of the FSC IC.
The FSC would also like to specifically acknowledge the detailed and helpful responses from
various organisations and individuals to the public consultation on an earlier version of the
draft.
The FSC would like to express its gratitude to the Global Environmental Facility (GEF), for the
financial support that made this work possible. Special thanks also go to UNEP and CIFOR
for their institutional support.
Last but not least, the development of this guide has been informed by the field work carried
out in Mexico, Brazil and Cameroon with special contributions from Sergio Madrid and Ariel
Arias Toledo (Mexico), Bruno Martinelli (Brazil), Dr. Marie Mbolo and Parfait Mimbini Essono
(Cameroon).

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Forest Stewardship Council

FSCS VISION

The worlds forests meet the social, ecological and economic rights and needs of the present
generation without compromising those of future generations.

FSCS MISSION

The FSC shall promote environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial, and economically
viable management of the world's forests.

> Environmentally appropriate forest management ensures that the harvest of timber
and non-timber products maintains the forest's biodiversity, productivity and ecological
processes.

> Socially beneficial forest management helps both local people and society at large to
enjoy long term benefits and also provides strong incentives to local people to sustain
the forest resources and adhere to long-term management plans.

> Economically viable forest management means that forest operations are structured
and managed so as to be sufficiently profitable, without generating financial profit at
the expense of the forest resources, the ecosystem or affected communities. The
tension between the need to generate adequate financial returns and the principles of
responsible forest operations can be reduced through efforts to market forest products
for their best value.1
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1
FSC Global Strategy (2007): Strengthening Forest Conservation, Communities and Markets.
http://www.fsc.org/global_strategy.html

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 Table of contents

TABLE OF CONTENTS

SECTION A: INTRODUCTION..................................................................................... 7

A1. What is this guide about?....................................................................................... 7

A2. Who is this guide for? ............................................................................................ 7

A3. How will it help with FSC certification requirements?............................................. 8

A4. We already have a management plan: isnt that enough? ..................................... 8

A5. FSC and biodiversity.............................................................................................. 8

A6. FSC and High Conservation Value Forests ........................................................... 9

Who decides where the High Conservation Value Forests (HCVF) are? .............. 10
Small and Low Intensity Forest Management........................................................ 12

SECTION B: HOW TO MEET THE REQUIREMENTS FOR HCVF AND

BIODIVERSITY MANAGEMENT................................................................................ 14

Biodiversity and High Conservation Values: the Basic Steps..................................... 14

Step 1 Identify ......................................................................................................... 15

1.1 What you need to know ................................................................................... 15
1.2 How to find the information you need .............................................................. 18
1.3 How to display and use the information you have found ................................. 19

Step 2 Manage ........................................................................................................ 25

2.1 Define your objectives be clear about what you want to protect or conserve.
.............................................................................................................................. 26
2.2 Identify the main obstacles or threats to achieving your objectives. Be clear
about what activities are currently taking place in the forest and how they might
affect your objectives............................................................................................. 26
2.3 Decide what actions to take. Decide what changes you need to make to current
activities................................................................................................................. 27
2.4 Take action...................................................................................................... 31

Step 3 Monitor ......................................................................................................... 36

3.1 What is monitoring?......................................................................................... 36
3.2 Good Monitoring in Practice ............................................................................ 36
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Forest Stewardship Council

SECTION C: HCVF AND BIODIVERSITY MANAGEMENT BY GROUPS OF FOREST

OPERATIONS............................................................................................................ 43

C1. Contiguous forest properties in an FSC group................................................ 43

C2. Small forest plots in a non-forest landscape ................................................... 45
C3. Small forest plots in a non-FSC forest landscape ........................................... 45

REFERENCE SECTIONS .......................................................................................... 47

1. FSC forest management certification ..................................................................... 47

Principle 6: Environmental impact ......................................................................... 48
Principle 8 Monitoring and assessment .............................................................. 49
Principle 9 Maintenance of high conservation value forests ............................... 50

2. Where to get more information ............................................................................... 50

FSC ....................................................................................................................... 50
FSC certification bodies......................................................................................... 50
Organizations that support forest conservation and the HCV concept and have
projects on the ground in many countries:............................................................. 51
Sources of guidance about High Conservation Values ......................................... 51

3. Glossary of useful terms......................................................................................... 52

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 Section A: IntroductionSection A: Introduction

SECTION A: INTRODUCTION

A1. What is this guide about?

This is a guide to help managers and owners of small-scale and low intensity forest opera-
tions maintain or improve the management of biodiversity and High Conservation Values
(HCVs) within their forests. This guide is not designed to replace management plans but to
strengthen them.
It is designed to help them meet FSC certification requirements for biodiversity and HCV con-
servation through the process of identification, management and monitoring.
It explains some simple ways to protect and integrate forest biodiversity and HCVs into man-
agement of productive natural forests.

This guide covers two important parts of forest

management

> Responsible management of biodiversity

> Identifying, managing and monitoring High

Conservation Value Forests

They are closely linked together

A2. Who is this guide for?

The guidance is targeted at forest operations in natural forests, particularly in the tropics
which are either:
Small scale operations occurring in a small area, or
Low intensity operations having very low extraction levels
The guide is relevant for any type of management including forests used by communities, pri-
vate owners or the state.
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The guidance applies to single small or low intensity operations, and to groups of operations,
such as a cooperative, a forest owners association, or a group formed to obtain FSC Group
Certification. Additional guidance specifically for groups of forest operations is given in sec-
tion 3 of this guide.

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A3. How will it help with FSC certification requirements?

FSC certification evaluates forest management using a set of 10 Principles and associated
criteria. They include economic, managerial, environmental and social requirements.
The information in this guide is designed to help small forests and low intensity operations
comply with:
The biodiversity requirements of FSC Principle 6 (Environmental Impact)
FSC Principle 9 (Maintenance of High Conservation Value Forests).
It will also help with carrying out good monitoring practices, which are a requirement of FSC
Principle 8 (Monitoring).
For more information about FSC see the reference section at the back of this guide.

A4. We already have a management plan: isnt that enough?

This guide is not designed to replace management plans but to strengthen them.
Most forest operations already have a management plan. Even NTFP harvesting operations
usually need a simple management plan in order to have a government permit.
Management plans usually focus on the appropriate level of harvesting guaranteeing con-
tinuous harvesting of trees or other forest products on a regular basis, without loss of yield.
Some environmental impact management is usually included e.g. protecting river-side vege-
tation, reducing erosion and run-off from forest roads, and planning directional-felling of trees
to minimize damage to surrounding vegetation.
However, while they may cover some conservation issues experience has shown that man-
agement plans mainly concentrate on the productive part of the forest and usually do not ad-
dress biodiversity very well. There are a number of requirements in the FSC standard about
biodiversity and High Conservation Value forests which must also be included in forest man-
agement. These are described in the following two sections.

A5. FSC and biodiversity

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FSCs requirements for responsible management of biodiversity are partly contained within
Principle 6 Environmental impact. The full text of Principle 6 and its criteria is included the
Reference Section at the end of this guide.

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 Section A: Introduction

In summary, the biodiversity requirements of Principle 6 require that forest management:

Is protecting rare, threatened and endangered species (of birds, plants, reptiles etc.) [P6.2]
Is protecting the areas in which these species live, feed, and breed (their habitats).[P6.2]
Controls inappropriate hunting or collecting of animals and plants.[P6.2]
Maintains the natural functions of the forest. For example, ensuring that there is still a
balance of trees of different ages, including seedlings, and that there is still a natural range
of species and types of vegetation present. [P6.3]
Takes into account the impacts of forestry on the forest [6.1]
Uses conservation zones and protection areas where appropriate [6.2]
Other references to biodiversity management are found in FSCs Principle 9 Maintenance of
High Conservation Value Forests.

Box 1: Biodiversity what is it?

Bio means life, and diversity means variety.
The simplest definition of biodiversity is the variety of all living things
Maintaining biodiversity = maintaining all the variability found in nature.
There are 3 main concerns:
Diversity of species: maintaining all living species (e.g. different plants, ani-
mals, insects) and preventing species from going extinct or becoming endan-
gered.
Diversity within species: Maintaining the different populations, races and sub-
types of individual species (e.g. maintaining healthy breeding populations in dif-
ferent areas).
Diversity of ecosystems: Maintaining different types of habitats or ecosystems
meaning the range of natural areas where plants and animals live (e.g. main-
taining different types of vegetation which are characteristic to an area).

A6. FSC and High Conservation Value Forests

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Maintaining High Conservation Value Forests is an important part of FSC certification.

FSC created the concept of High Conservation Value Forest, as a way of identifying particu-
larly important forests those that have important social or environmental values.

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Forest Stewardship Council

The HCVF concept promotes responsible management of forests or parts of forests which are
critically important or which have outstanding significance locally, nationally, regionally or
even globally. See Box 2 for the different types of High Conservation Value Forests.
The full text of Principle 9 is included the Reference Section at the end of this guide.
A summary of FSC requirements about High Conservation Value Forests (Principle 9):
a) you have evaluated which parts of your forest area might be considered High Conser-
vation Value Forest. [P9.1]
b) you have done this in consultation with other people who might have an interest in
this.[P9.2]
c) you have made sure that the way you use and manage the forest doesnt negatively
affect the critical values you found. [P9.3]
d) You have a system to check that the values or qualities are being protected. [P9.4]
If you are working in forests which have High Conservation Values the forest manager has an
extra level of responsibility, above and beyond what would be expected in responsible forest
management generally, and this is what is recognized in the FSC Principle 9. You need to
take special precautions to protect the value that exists there.
You may not have to change any of your management it depends on the values you have
identified, and the way you use and manage the forest.

Who decides where the High Conservation Value Forests (HCVF) are?

The person responsible for managing the forest usually decides whether a forest has high
conservation values.
But consultation with other people is essential. Consultation should include all other users of
the forest (e.g. members of local communities).
You may also consult people with specialist knowledge about the type of forest and the animal
and plant populations present there, or the services it performs (such as watershed protection,
or erosion control).
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 Section A: Introduction

Box 2: High Conservation Value Forests what are they?

The term High Conservation Value Forests (HCVF), refers to forests of outstanding
and critical importance.
FSC created the definition of High Conservation Values. Their definition is com-
monly presented as 6 categories of High Conservation Values.
HCV 1: Globally, regionally or nationally significant concentrations of biodiversity
values (this includes: protected areas; rare or threatened species; endemic
species; and seasonal concentrations of species)
HCV 2: Globally, regionally or nationally significant large landscapelevel forests
HCV 3: Forest areas that are in or contain rare, threatened or endangered ecosys-
tems
HCV 4: Forest areas that provide basic services of nature in critical situations (This
includes: protection of watersheds, protection against erosion and destruc-
tive fire)
HCV 5: Forest areas fundamental to meeting basic needs of local communities
HCV 6: Forest areas critical to local communities traditional cultural identity
To be a High Conservation Value Forest, it is only necessary for the forest to have
one of the six values. It is possible that the forest may have all 6 values.
It is the forest areas that are needed to protect the values that are considered
as High Conservation Value Forests. Management of those forests must aim
to conserve the High Conservation Values (HCVs).
It could be that all of the forest is considered to have High Conservation Values,
or it might be that only part of the forest has these values if so, thats the part
you have to manage to protect those values.

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Forest Stewardship Council

HCVF toolkits
Many universities or colleges have students who need to find a research
subject, and would be willing to do a study for you, during a few months.

In some countries groups of experts have developed national-level guid-

ance about where the HCVFs are likely to be found in their country.
The guidance is usually presented as an HCVF Toolkit and is designed
to inform forest managers where the HCVFs are likely to be. For example,
they may identify which types of vegetation would be considered rare or
endangered, and provide lists of animal species which are protected under
national and international law.
For example there are Toolkits for Ecuador, Indonesia, Malaysia, Ghana,
Bolivia, Papua New Guinea and Vietnam and parts of Europe and North
America. If you are working in any of these countries you should get a
copy of the Toolkit to help you work out whether your forest is likely to
have HCVF.
Other countries, such as Brazil, Mexico and Cameroon have been devel-
oping simple checklists to help community forests to identify whether
they have HCVF.
To see an HCVF Toolkits or checklist, contact the FSC representative in
your country. Or contact one of the sources of information given in the
Reference Section at the end of this guide.

Small and Low Intensity Forest Management

FSC requires compliance with its forest management Principles and Criteria, but how you
comply with the requirements will vary greatly according to the scale of the operation. FSC
emphasizes that requirements should be implemented according to the scale and intensity of
operations and the uniqueness of the affected resources.
For each criterion, including those for biodiversity management and high conservation forest,
there are simple and achievable methods of meeting the requirements.
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Assessments for HCVFs, for biodiversity, actions to promote conservation and monitoring
activities should all be appropriate to the scale and intensity of the forest operation. Small or
low intensity operations can reasonably be expected to devote less time and resources to

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 Section A: Introduction

such activities than large or high-impact operations would. So, if your operation is small or
low intensity keep it simple.
If your operation is very low intensity it is quite likely that your current activities are not affect-
ing overall biodiversity or HCVs but you need to confirm this by doing some simple checking
to see what is happening. In some operations the management of the forest may actually be
conserving it better than if there were no management for example by adding a value to the
forest that reduces a threat of clearance for alternative land uses, or helping to prevent illegal
uses. In such cases you should be able to demonstrate that your activities do not substantially
negatively affect the biodiversity and or High Conservation Values.

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Forest Stewardship Council

SECTION B: HOW TO MEET THE REQUIREMENTS FOR HCVF AND BIODIVER-

SITY MANAGEMENT

Biodiversity and High Conservation Values: the Basic Steps

Responsible management of biodiversity and of High Conservation Value forests share the
same three basic steps: identification, management and monitoring.

Assess your forest

for biodiversity and HCVs

STEP 1

Indentify

Do you have High Conservation

Value Forest?

STEP 2

Manage

STEP 3

Monitor
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 Section B: Step 1 - Identify

Assess your forest

Step 1 Identify
for biodiversity and HCVs
Finding out what you have got and where it is!

STEP 1
Step 1 covers
What information you need to know Indentify
How to find the information
How to display and use the information

1.1 What you need to know

The first step is to be sure of what youve got in the forest and where it is. this includes
working out through consultation if your forest has High Conservation Values.
We recommend 5 key actions which will help you to:
identify biodiversity in your forest
identify whether or not you have High Conservation Value Forest areas.
If your country has an HCV Toolkit, you should use it to help you decide whether your findings
are significant at the regional, national or global level.

Action 1 Identify any rare, threatened or endangered animals and plants.

Forest managers should be aware of:
The presence of rare, threatened or endangered species and any species that are
protected by national laws
The presence of any endemic species. These are species that are found in your country
or region and nowhere else on earth.
Where they are found. If they occur in specific areas, you should be able to describe
these or show them on a map if possible.
What conditions they need. The kind of vegetation and environment do they need to
survive, feed and reproduce.
FSC requires that you are able to protect rare, threatened and endangered species and their
habitats [P 6.2], that you maintain biodiversity [6.3 b] and that you carry out an assessment to
determine the presence of High Conservation Value Forest characteristics [P 9.1]
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If you have a large concentration of rare, threatened or endangered animals and

plants (i.e. lots of different rare species, or big populations of one or a few rare spe-
cies), this makes your forest very important and are considered to have a High
Conservation Value (HCV 1).

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Action 2 Identify any special or unusual types of vegetation.

Forest managers should be aware of:
The presence of rare, threatened or endangered ecosystems.
Where they are found show them on a map if possible. Or demonstrate awareness of
their location, especially in relation to any harvesting activities.
In order to know whether you have High Conservation Value forests, you need to know
whether your forest is within a rare, threatened or endangered ecosystem, or whether your
forest contains areas within it that are rare, threatened or endangered ecosystems. [P9.1]
Such ecosystems may be types of forest, marshes, grasslands with specific plant and animal
species which are rare or absent elsewhere. You are also expected to maintain the variety of
ecosystems present in your forest [P6.3 b].
If you have ecosystems that are particularly rare or unusual, these are considered to
have a High Conservation Value (HCV 3)

Action 3 Identify any parts of the forest area or surrounding area which are important for pro-
viding natural services such as watershed protection, erosion, drinking water sources, pre-
venting mudslides or landslides, etc.
Forest managers should be aware of:
The services provided, and who benefits from them. For example, who relies on the
fresh water provided by forest streams? Are any communities or roads at risk from mud-
slides or landslides?
Any specific areas which provide crucial services. Is it all the forest area, or specific
parts of it which are important? Show them on a map if possible.
This is part of the requirement that you carry out an assessment to determine the presence of
High Conservation Value Forest characteristics [P 9.1]. It is also part of the requirement to
recognize and maintain the value of forest services [P 5.5]
If you have forests which provide a critical protection function, meaning that the
services that they provide are not just important but essential to health and wellbe-
ing of the people who rely on them, then these areas should be considered to have a
High Conservation Value (HCV 4)

Action 4 Identify how the forest is being used by local communities and if the forest is cultur-
ally or economically critical to any groups of people.
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Forest managers should be aware of:

Who is using the forest and how they are using it (e.g. timber, water sources, wild an-
imals, tree bark, plants, etc and whether its being used for food, for medicine, to sell etc).

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 Section B: Step 1 - Identify

Whether the use of the forest or forest products is critical to peoples wellbeing.
For example, how important is the forest to their diet or income?
Whether the use of the forest or forest products is an important part of their culture.
For example, does the forest have an important cultural or religious significance
Which parts of the forest areas are used.
FSC standards include respect for the legal or customary rights of local people to use the for-
est unless they have explicitly and freely renounced these rights [P2.2]. They also require
that any sites of special cultural, ecological, economic or religious interest to indigenous peo-
ples must be recognized and protected, in cooperation with the indigenous peoples them-
selves [p2.3]. Understanding local peoples use of the forest is also part of the assessment to
determine the presence of High Conservation Value Forest characteristics [P 9.1].
Note that forest managers are also expected to control inappropriate hunting trapping fishing
and collecting [6.2] understanding who uses the forest and why, is part of this (see Step 2
manage for more details)
If you have forests which are critical to local people for their basic needs (e.g. food,
livelihoods or health), or for their cultural identity (e.g. religion and spiritual wellbe-
ing), these should be considered to have High Conservation Value (HCV 5 and HCV
6)

Action 5 Identify whether your forest is part of a very large, nationally or globally important
forest area.
Forest managers should be aware of:
Is the forest you manage part of a large, important forest area at the national level?
Are there few settlements and agriculture, and many animals and birds in that forest?
(especially large mammals that travel large areas)
FSC requires that your forest management activities should conserve unique or fragile land-
scapes, and maintain or enhance the valuable attributes of large, landscape-level forests.
This is part of the assessment to determine the presence of High Conservation Value Forest
characteristics [P 9.1], since the HCV definition includes globally, regionally or nationally sig-
nificant large landscape-level forests.
If your forest forms a part of a very large, nationally or globally important forest
where most wild animals are still abundant (for example a forest which has re-
mained as forest for a long time and covers many thousands of hectares), this is
considered to have High Conservation Value (HCV 2)
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Forest Stewardship Council

1.2 How to find the information you need

There are many sources of information about the biodiversity and HCVs in your forest.
a) Existing management plans, maps, and research.
Dont reinvent the wheel: check what studies and inventories already form part of the man-
agement plan. They are likely to provide classifications of vegetation types, and maybe stud-
ies of rare wildlife and plants.
b) Consultation: Your local knowledge and that of other forest users
Use your own knowledge and broad and inclusive consultation to ensure that you are aware
of the important values. Consider the following:
Forest workers carrying out inventories, or marking trees for felling, are often able to iden-
tify the most critical forest areas.
People who collect fruit and seeds are generally very familiar with even subtle differences
in forest type, and can identify many different plant species.
Experienced foresters, forest technicians, forest workers and local farmers, NTFP collec-
tors and hunters will all have knowledge about biodiversity and important forest areas.
If your forest is used by communities other than your own, you will need to involve them in
discussions about use of the forest and protection of its biodiversity. You will need to con-
sult with people to find out if they are critically dependent on the forest, and also whether
their use of the forest endangers any of the biodiversity of conservation values.
c) Use national-level work on HCVF
Find out whether anyone in your country has already developed an HCVF toolkit, HCVF na-
tional interpretation, or checklist. Contact the FSC office in your country, or a certification
body, or the HCV Resource Network. They may have made maps to show where the forests
that might be HCVF are located.
d) Government sources
Most countries have a lot of official information about endangered species, rare forest types,
protected animals and birds etc. It should be available in maps or reports.
e) Environmental NGOs
Contact conservation organizations that have projects or offices in your country for advice on
biodiversity identification and management. Local or national conservation organizations often
have helpful experts who know the area well. For a list of international organizations that often
produce useful maps and guidance see the Reference Sections at the end of this guide.
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 Section B: Step 1 - Identify

Getting support from local researchers

Many universities or colleges have students who need to find a research

subject, and would be willing to do a study for you, during a few months.

Ask people you know for contacts in a local or national university (De-
pending on what you want this might be the department of botany, natu-
ral resources management, zoology department)
Speak to both potential students and their supervisor to agree a work
plan.
Emphasize that this is an opportunity to carry out research which has a
practical application.
Be clear about what you need; how you want the results presented and
what you intend to do with them.
Ask the students to commit to coming back to present and discuss their
findings with you, not just to send a report.

1.3 How to display and use the information you have found
a) Maps
If you already use maps for management or discussion, then including the important biodiver-
sity areas and HCVs on a map is a useful way to see how they may be affected by your man-
agement activities.
If your operation does not commonly use maps (e.g. a community operation which harvests
NTFPs using a traditional management system), it should be sufficient to be able to describe
the important areas (and the way they are protected).
If you use a map, consider including:
Areas important for rare, threatened or endangered animals and plants
Any special or unusual types of vegetation (not just forest vegetation there might be rare
types of swamps, grasslands or rivers and streams too)
Parts of forest area or surrounding area which are important for natural services such as
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drinking water sources, prevention of landslides

The areas used, or planned to be used for commercial harvesting of timber

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Forest Stewardship Council

Areas used for other commercial activities such as ecotourism, environmental services, or
extraction of other products
The areas that are used by local communities for critically important activities (cultural or
for economic reasons)
Any area that the law says should be protected (these areas may include buffer zones to
national parks, forests within a certain distance to rivers, forests on steep slopes, or cer-
tain rare forests, e.g. mountain-top forests or mangroves)
Note: The type of maps you produce will depend on the technical support you have, and the
resources you have. But even the simplest map can be useful. Forest certification auditors will
take account of the scale of your operation when judging what you have done: in many cases
a simple map is sufficient. In such cases verbal explanations are sufficient to demonstrate that
youve identified important areas.

b) Tables/Lists
Where appropriate make a clear list of your findings so that you can account for them in your
management plan. A simple example is given in Table 1
If helpful for you and your management you could also show a list of High Conservation Val-
ues you have recorded in a table for easy reference (See Table 2 for an example, based on
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the values identified in Table 1). This sort of table would make it very clear to a certification
body that you have thought about and identified High Conservation Value areas.

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 Section B: Step 1 - Identify

Remember
It might be that your whole forest is critically important for some things (like water
supply), and that parts of your forest are critically important for other things (like
protecting the habitats of rare wild animals). Your HCV areas will then be of different
sizes.

Table 1: A table showing important aspects of biodiversity and high conservation

What important values were Notes on current status Where? (put this
found in the forest? on map)
Action 1: Rare, endangered, en-
demic or protected species
Plants
Rare Gaharu tree is found in Trees are being cut by timber In the lower hill
very low numbers poachers for resin. slopes.
Many orchid species, known Orchid species not identified.
only from this mountain range. Large flowered orchids becom- Restricted to steep
ing rare due to over-collection cliffs
Birds
Two nationally rare hornbill Very occasionally nest in very Tall forest on the
species (white-crowned and large trees. Rarely seen in the lower slopes
wrinkled-pouch hornbills) last 5 years
Endemic mountain peacock- Occasional large flocks seen, Throughout forest
pheasant, globally only found not hunted for cultural reasons.
in this area
Mammals
Malaysian tapir Tracks seen but no individuals Tracks along moun-
spotted in recent years tain streams. Range
unknown.
White handed Gibbon Gibbon song frequently heard, Ranges throughout
at least one resident pair in forest
managed forest.
Action 2: Rare or fragile eco-
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systems
7 small areas (< 15Ha each) of Inaccessible and undisturbed. Narrow ridge-tops
very stunted montane forests Few valuable products found in on highest hills.
these areas.

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Forest Stewardship Council

Action 3: Natural services from

forests
Watershed protection Water from forest streams very Whole forest pro-
important to local communities. vides this service.
Protection of roads from land- All steep slopes
slides particularly important (> 25o) provide this
Erosion prevention service
Action 4: community forest use
Products gathered from the forest Some families harvest fruits, Throughout forest,
nuts, firewood etc., for domes- but mainly within 1
Wild fruit and nuts
tic consumption and sale on hours walk from
Firewood and timber local markets. These products villages.
tend to form a low proportion of
Forest herbs
household income/food con-
sumption.
Game (hunting) Local hunters formed an asso- In designated
ciation to manage hunting. zones, varies from
Game forms a low proportion of year to year.
household food consumption.
Cultural uses of the forest
Local people go to venerate In Bukit Mata Air
Two sacred caves, well known
their ancestors and pray for
to all villagers
good harvests
Action 5: Large, landscape-
scale forests
All forests in this landscape are None None
smaller than 15,000 Ha & frag-
mented by roads and settlements,
no landscape-level forests remain.
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 Section B: Step 1 - Identify

Table 2: An example of an HCV summary table

Finding

HCV Description Yes Maybe No

(present) (present) (absent/
not likely)
1 Concentrations of rare, threatened or en- Yes
demic species
Large numbers of rare, endemic peacock-pheasants, and many endemic orchid spe-
cies are the main reason to decide this HCV is present.
2 Large, landscape level forests No
All remaining forests in this landscape are < 15,000 Ha and fragmented by roads and
settlements, no landscapelevel forests remain.
3 Rare, threatened or endangered ecosystems Maybe
Small areas of stunted ridge-top forest. These forests are rare in the region and may
be rare nationally; further advice from a suitable expert is needed to decide if they are
HCV.
4.1 Areas critical to water catchments Yes
The whole forest area protects critical water supplies to neighboring communities
4.2 Areas critical to erosion control Yes
Forests on steep slopes protect key access roads from landslides
4.3 Areas providing critical barriers to destruc- No
tive fire
No fires are recorded in intact forests in this area, where rainfall is very high.
5 Basic needs of local communities Maybe
Although many families use the forests there is little evidence so far that communities
are critically reliant on forests for food or other resources. (the main activity is coffee
farming) However, some families may be more heavily dependent on forest products.
6 Areas critical to cultural identity Yes
Two sacred caves are found in Bukit Mata Air, where local people go to venerate their
ancestors and pray for good harvests.
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Forest Stewardship Council

Tips for community operations: identification

Consult with community members who are most familiar with the forest:

Leaders and elders

Collectors of nuts, fruit, resin etc.

Healers and experts in medicinal plants

Hunters

Forest workers

Make a special effort to talk to groups who may be less easy to meet with,
and may use the forest in ways which the community leaders are un-
aware of:

The poorest families.

The women

Families or persons that are not part of the formal community, but live
within the village area.

It is important to understand how they use the forest.

Check if they depend on the forest for any use of plants or animals
for cash or subsistence use.

Everyone who uses the forest should be involved in making decisions

about future use of the forest: especially if you want to introduce new
rules.
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 Section B: Step 2 - Manage

Step 2 Manage
Make a management plan!

Step 2 covers STEP 2

Defining your objectives

Manage
Identifying obstacles and threats
Deciding what actions to take
Taking action!

Every operation even a very small one should have

a simple management plan. Having High Conserva-
tion Value Forests
If its a small forest or one managed with very low harvest- doesnt mean that you
ing levels, this can be a very simple plan. In some cases have to stop harvesting
this may even be a verbal description if for example the or turn everything into a
managers are not able to use written documents. conservation area!
The management plan should include how you are going What you choose to do will
to protect the biodiversity of the forest, and protect any depend on what you found
High Conservation Values (HCVs) that are found there. in the identification step,
This does NOT need to be complicated nor expensive. and the sort of forest man-
It might be that you are already doing most of the right agement you already do.
things.

Managing High Conservation Value areas

If you have identified the presence of High Conservation Value Forests you will need to pay
special attention to ensuring that the important qualities of these forests are conserved. You
will need to balance production and conservation in such a way that the High Conservation
Values are maintained. FSC standards require that any forest management in High Conserva-
tion Value Forests maintains or enhances the values found there [P9].
Particularly in low intensity operations and small operations it is usually still possible to con-
tinue using the forest (e.g. for harvesting trees, collecting fruits, grazing etc), but you may
need to make some changes to be sure of having a low impact.
FSC expects the management plan to include specific measures to maintain or enhance the
values you have found [P9.1].
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Managing biodiversity generally

We recommend 4 key actions to take when thinking about managing your forest to maintain
the biodiversity and the high conservation values you have identified.

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Forest Stewardship Council

4 key actions for managing biodiversity and HCVs

1 Define your objectives. Be clear about what you want to protect or con-
serve.
2 Identify the main obstacles or threats to achieving your objectives. Be
clear about what activities are currently taking place in the forest and how
they might affect your objectives.
3 Decide what actions to take. Decide what changes you need to make to
current activities. (you may not need to make any)
4 Take those actions! (and then monitor them!)

2.1 Define your objectives be clear about what you want to protect or conserve.
Use the information you collected in Step 1 to establish what it is you need to protect or con-
serve e.g. the key habitats you need to conserve or the species which are particularly rare.

2.2 Identify the main obstacles or threats to achieving your objectives. Be clear
about what activities are currently taking place in the forest and how they might af-
fect your objectives.
Forest management activities
Start by considering any timber extraction activities these are likely to have the biggest im-
pact. Your management plan may already have a list of possible environmental impacts of
your logging. You should be aware of where the harvesting operations are being carried out,
and where are they planned.
Then look at all the other major activities such as building roads, log concentration areas. For
each one consider their possible impact on the biodiversity and High Conservation Values you
identified in Step 1. See an example in Table 3.
Other uses of the forest
You also need to consider other uses of the forest, and how they are affecting biodiversity and
conservation value areas. These include collection of forest products resins, nuts and fruit
and hunting. They also include illegal activities such as poaching, illegal fishing, artisanal min-
ing, and encroachment for agriculture. Make a list of all these forest activities and consider
how they might affect the biodiversity and other values you identified in Step 1.
FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

Once you have enough information about the impacts of forest based activities, you can then
decide how best to reduce those impacts. See Table 3.
Note: You also need to be aware of other types of threats such as forest pest outbreaks.

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 Section B: Step 2 - Manage

2.3 Decide what actions to take. Decide what changes you need to make to current
activities.
Taking into account the different uses of the forest decide how to manage your activities in
order to maintain biodiversity and high conservation values within your forest area.
Decisions relating to community use of the forest should be made through discussions with
the community members.
In some situations, it may be necessary to introduce new rules or ways of operating but
these should be practical and able to be implemented within your current operations.. See
examples in Table 3.

The precautionary principle

If you are not sure, proceed with caution!

FSC asks that your management of High Conservation Value Forests in-
cludes the precautionary principle [P 9.3].

This principle is usually used to mean that where an action might lead to se-
rious or irreversible damage, and you are not sure of its impacts, then you
should proceed with great caution.

In any High Conservation Value Forests, you are expected to be cautious in

your actions, unless you can be sure that they are not negatively affecting
the values youve found. Define your objectives. Be clear about what you
want to protect or conserve.

Depending on what you have identified, making changes to take care of biodiversity and
HCVs might include the following simple actions:
Changing the planned order of cutting, to leave an important area for animal-breeding until
after the breeding season.
Leaving a greater number of seed trees to promote more regeneration of a particular spe-
cies.
Not harvesting in certain patches of forest in order to leave representative samples un-
touched.
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Not harvesting on steep slopes.

Making a corridor of forest along with your neighbors to allow the passage of wild animals
over a bigger area.

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Forest Stewardship Council

Not allowing tree harvesting (only extraction of fruits, resins etc.) in the rarest, most en-
dangered part of the forest.
Reviewing the design of roads, river crossings and log yards and the procedures to build
them, in order to reduce damage (e.g. road building only in the dry season to reduce ero-
sion).
Finding ways to regulate the legal hunting or collecting of certain species and eliminate
illegal hunting and poaching through community initiatives.

Conservation areas do we need them?

The FSC standard mentions that conservation zones or protection areas

may need to be established [P6.1].

Depending on the size of your forest area, how much of the forest you are
working in and how destructive your operations are, it may be appropriate
to set aside separate conservation zones and keep out of them entirely.
However, generally for very small forests, or if you are only harvesting
fruits, resins or seeds at a level which does not affect the forest signifi-
cantly, you would not be expected to set aside separate conservation ar-
eas. Instead you should aim to show that the overall low level of interven-
tion in the forest is safeguarding rare, threatened and endangered species
and their habitats.

Where many individual small forests are seeking certification as part of a

group it might be appropriate to agree to maintain a single, large, shared
conservation area rather than individual, tiny, scattered conservation sites
on each group members site. See Section C of this guide for more guid-
ance on group management of biodiversity and HCVs.
FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

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 Section B: Step 2 - Manage

Table 3: Forest based activities, threats to biodiversity, and actions to reduce threats,
(example of a community forest)

Who uses Where? In what way might this af- What, if anything do we
the forest fect biodiversity/ HCV? need to do to make sure
and what there are no harmful
for? impacts?
Forestry activities and timber harvesting
Road con- All roads 1 Damage to areas of rare 1. Plan roads in advance
struction and especially vegetation identified in and avoid as far as possible
maintenance new roads. Step 1 putting roads through frag-
ile/rare vegetation areas.
2 Erosion silting up the river
(could affect drinking wa- 2. Plan roads to follow ridge
ter quality downstream) tops and contours. Dig
drains where necessary and
put silt traps near rivers
Felling of trees All logging 1. Damage to nearby trees, 1. Cut lianas before felling.
areas e.g. if pulled down by lianas Use directional felling tech-
(especially niques to minimize damage.
2. Damage to rare vegetation
rare or
types identified in Step 1. 2. Reduce or stop felling in
fragile for-
fragile areas.
est types 3. loss of nests of some spe-
identified in cies if felled in nesting season 3. Mark nesting trees and
Step 1) (especially serious if these are avoid felling them during
nesting trees of rare birds nesting season. Keep some
identified in Step 1) suitable trees for nesting.
Extraction of All logging 1. Compaction of soils through 1. Skidding to take place
trees areas skidding of logs. during dry periods when
(especially soils are hard.
2. Increased erosion on
rare or
slopes and effects on water 2. plan skid trails as far as
fragile for-
quality possible to avoid crossing
est types
streams.
identified in 3. damage to rare species, or
Step 1) rare vegetation types identi- 3. Plan skid trails
fied in Step 1
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Forest Stewardship Council

Table 3 cont

Who uses Where? In what way might this af- What, if anything do we
the forest fect biodiversity/ HCV? need to do to make sure
and what there are no harmful im-
for? pacts?
Other forest-based activities
Conversion of See map 1. Loss of vegetation cover Discuss land-use planning
individual for- of forest (particularly damaging in ar- at the level of the commu-
est plots for plots cut eas of rare or fragile vegeta- nity forest administrative
agroforestry, down for tion identified in Step 1.) council. Agree zones of
agriculture or agriculture forest reserve and zones of
2. Major loss of wildlife habitat
livestock rear- possible conversion to agri-
and high risk that the rare
ing, by indi- culture or agroforestry. En-
species identified in Step 1
vidual families sure that High Conservation
will decrease.
in the commu- Value forest forms part of
nity. 3. Increased erosion and silt- the forest reserve.
ing of rivers where vegetation
is cleared around streams.
Effects on drinking water qual-
ity.
Hunting of East of the The men do not have permis- Hold meeting to consider
various mon- River, en- sion from the forest owners to ways to prevent or reduce
key species by tering from hunt. High risk that the total this hunting.
men from the East on population of monkeys will
Contact wildlife department
nearby town, the main decrease.
for help.
to sell meat. road. (see
Monkeys are a threatened
map) Put ditches on old access
species and are protected by
tracks to prevent vehicle
law.
entry.
Bush Mango Whole for- Volumes are low. Traditionally Not enough information
(Fruit and est they leave a quantity of fruit available: need to find out if
seed) and cola on the forest floor. May be the fruit and nut trees are
nut collection having some effect on the regenerating sufficiently.
by villagers regrowth of these species
from seed?
Firewood and About 1km Pressure on certain preferred Increase diversity of spe-
construction either side tree species is leading to local cies used.
timber collec- of main disappearance.
Seek alternatives and en-
tion by most road be-
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sure regeneration (e.g. en-

village families tween vil-
courage villagers to plant
lages
seedlings of preferred spe-
cies).

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 Section B: Step 2 - Manage

2.4 Take action

Too often there is a lot of emphasis on the identification of biodiversity and important forests,
but very little action taken. Dont let your plans sit in a folder. Put them into action.
To do this effectively you may need to:
Make changes to management plans
Explain changes in management practices to forest workers
Carry out training for new practices
Hold meetings with local communities or forest users to discuss changes.

Tips for community operations management

Discuss in community meetings the results of your work and consultations to

identify biodiversity and High Conservation Value Forests.
Present the results to the community and explain why this is important for the
future management of the forest, and for obtaining or maintaining FSC certi-
fication.
Discuss with the community the possible changes (if any are needed) to
management, and whether there are any concerns about the way community
members are using the forest (e.g. Hunting, harvesting firewood)
Hold a discussion in the community about how to protect the values you
have found, as well as meeting their own economic needs.
Its recommended that you write down the decisions made and the reasons
they were made. This will be useful to share with certifiers.

FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

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Forest Stewardship Council

Case study 1 Identifying threats, and management actions

In Limbe, Cameroon, five villages are contained within the 3735 ha Bim-
bia Bonadikombo Community Forest.
Several possible High Conservation Values were identified by discussions
among community members and research by students.
As part of the discussions about how best to manage these areas, major
threats to the HCVs were identified.
e.g. The presence of concentrations of Drills (baboons), Chimpanzees
and Dwarf Crocodiles, all of which are threatened species at a national
level (HCV 1).
Threats to these include poaching, slash and burn agricultural encroach-
ment, and illegal timber harvesting
Areas of mangrove forest (HCV 3) and seasonal concentrations of threat-
ened marine turtles (HCV1)
Threats to these values include illegal wood harvesting for firewood or
charcoal, fish smoking and poaching.
They already have some actions to address some of these threats, such
as working with the Ministry of Forest and Wildlife to seize chainsaws,
rifles and traps from illegal harvesters and poachers, and punish those
caught with them. They are now discussing management strategies to
address these threats including new internal regulations, programmes of
sensitization and education.
Source: Marie Mbolo and Parfait Mimbini Esono, FSC Cameroon

The special case of hunting, fishing, trapping, collecting

Hunting or capture of live animals can have a very big impact on the wildlife in forests in a
very short space of time. While it can be difficult to control, FSC expects inappropriate hunt-
ing, fishing, trapping and collecting to be controlled [P6.2], and this is also an important part of
managing High Conservation Value forests which have high concentrations of rare, threat-
ened or endangered animal species. [P 9.3]
To control hunting, fishing, trapping and collecting in your forest, you need to know:
FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

What animals you have (you should have found this in Step 1)
Which types of animals are caught or killed

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 Section B: Step 2 - Manage

The different groups of people involved in hunting. Some examples:

o Community members hunting for their own consumption
o Community members with rights to hunt for sale
o Poachers, people who enter the forest illegally
o Forest workers in the forest legally, but not allowed to hunt
If you know that animals are being killed or caught, you need to work closely with the people
who are hunting or catching them.
If their hunting is illegal you will need to concentrate your efforts on eliminating or reducing
this.
If their hunting is legal, you will need to find out what impact this is having on the animal popu-
lations (by monitoring), and on how to reduce any negative impacts. Below is some guidance
for some of the most common situations.

Hunting by community members

If you manage a community forest and those who hunt or catch animals are members of the
community, or have a right to use it, you need to work together with community members to
set sustainable levels of hunting. This usually means making sure:
That no animals that are protected under national law are killed
That the number of animals hunted does not mean that the overall number of animals is
reduced.
That there are still always enough males and females to produce young ones each year.

Hunting by outsiders
If you have a problem with hunting by outsiders you will need to take strong measures to limit
this. Can you work with them to reduce the hunting? If you cant work with them, what other
ways are there to stop them entering the forest? Actions that other people have tried include:
using ditches or gates on forest roads where people enter with vehicles.
using forest guards to patrol the area.
information and education about the most endangered species.
working with government Wildlife Departments to report incidents and help ensure unlaw-
ful hunting does not occur.

FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

signs warning against illegal activities

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Forest Stewardship Council

Hunting by forest workers

If animals are being caught by people hired to work in the forest, ensure that you work with
them to understand why they are doing so. There could be many motivations behind their ac-
tions. You will need to ensure that:
If forest workers are hunting to supplement their food, there are feasible alternatives for
them.
If forest workers are hunting to sell the meat, skins or other parts of the animals, and make
them aware of national or local laws governing this. You should speak to their employers
and devise ways to enforce the laws.
In all cases of hunting or trapping, it is important to ensure that no protected species are
killed and that animal numbers are not significantly affected overall.

Case study 2 Hunting in the La Trinidad Community Forest,

Mexico

The agricultural community of La Trinidad located at around 2000m in a

pine, and pine-oak forest in S.E. Mexico also manages a forest of 805ha.
The community of around 700 people has recently revised their rules for
forest access and use. The rules for hunting and collecting are different for
formal comuneros (official community members - usually male), their chil-
dren, women, and outsiders. For example the community does not issue any
sport hunting permits to outsiders (even if the federal government grants
them), whereas community members are allowed to hunt deer, squirrel, and
wild pig for domestic consumption, once they have obtained a permit from
the community leader. Wild turkey hunting has been temporarily banned,
while a local college carries out a study of the wild turkey population, and
the possibility of their controlled hunting.
Dawn Robinson, ProForest and Ariel Arias Toledo, ERA/FSC Mexico FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

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 Section B: Step 2 - Manage

A code of conduct to minimize the impact of hunting in small

and low intensity forest operations

Ensure that you, your family, your workers, [the community members]
and anyone else using your forests obey the national wildlife laws.
Make sure that none of the species protected by national law are
hunted in your lands.
Ensure that there is no bushmeat (game) taken out of your forest
unless the hunters have permission to do so, and are hunting the
agreed species.
Make sure that any [community members], forest workers, or people
collecting forest products are aware of agreements about species that
can be hunted, and how they may be hunted.
Do not allow workers, [group members, or community members] to
carry unlicensed firearms when in your forest.
If appropriate control vehicle access to your forest such as with barri-
ers or ditches - so that illegal hunters are less likely to enter.
Adapted from Zoological Society of London: Wildlife Conservation and
Tropical Timber Certification. Conservation Report No. 6., 2006

FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

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Forest Stewardship Council

Step 3 Monitor

Step 3 covers STEP 3

What is monitoring?
Good monitoring in practice Monitor
General guidance for monitoring
Monitoring wildlife and hunting

3.1 What is monitoring?

At its simplest, monitoring means checking to see what is happening.

Monitoring is required as part of good forest management [P8]. The main reason for monitor-
ing is to improve management.

Even in very small forests, or in those where you are harvesting little over a large area, some
form of checking what is happening is needed.

Monitoring does not need to be complex, or expensive.

Monitoring simply requires that you regularly check or measure certain key aspects of your
operations and your forest.

FSC expects to you carry out different types of monitoring, including assessing the condition of
the forest, the yield of the products you are harvesting, your management activities and their
social and environmental impacts. [P8]

For responsible management of biodiversity and High Conservation Value Forests, your moni-
toring should help you with at least the following:

Assessing how effective your management has been in protecting the High Conservation
Value Forests you identified [P9.4]
Being aware of whether you are safeguarding the rare, threatened and endangered spe-
cies and their habitats [as required by P6.2]

3.2 Good Monitoring in Practice

Monitoring should include checking whether your actions are in practice helping to protect or
conserve the biodiversity and HCVs that were identified. In other words check that your
FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

planned actions are having the intended conservation effect e.g. has the quality of the water
changed?; have numbers of endangered animals increased or decreased or remained the
same? etc.

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 Section B: Step 3 - Monitor

Monitoring wont work, unless you do it regularly, and unless you use the information you col-
lect.

Having a simple monitoring plan may help. It should record:

What you are going to monitor, and why.

How you are going to do it.
Who will do the monitoring, and how often.
With whom the results will be discussed, and how the results will be used

Table 4 shows an example of how to record this information.

Actions to be What to moni- How will it be moni- How the responsible people
taken tor tored? Who will be will report on what they find.
responsible? When
will they do this?
Protect HCV A. Check that The forest manager will If low impact logging is not
forest struc- low impact log- inspect the harvest area being practiced, the loggers will
ture (suitable ging is actually at the end of each week be warned that they are in
habitat for taking place, of harvest to ensure that breach of contract and asked to
HCV birds) by according to the low impact logging has implement the practices.
low impact management been used, and that
They will report on their find-
logging plan. damage to surrounding
ings and any action in the end
vegetation is minimal.
of year reporting meeting. If
necessary changes will be
made to the management plan,
and re-training may be offered.
Ensure key B. Check that The forest manager will The forest manager will report
HCV bird spe- the populations set up an annual moni- to the forest owner annually
cies are not of these ani- toring program of 4 key with a summary of the results.
negatively mals are being species with the ecology
They will be used to decide if
affected by maintained or department of the local
the low-impact logging is help-
low impact increased by university, for students
ing to maintain species popula-
logging the manage- to measure the popula-
tions.
ment measures tion of these birds and
taken animals in the forest
FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

over a 4 year period.

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Forest Stewardship Council

Who should participate in making the monitoring plan will depend on what sort of operation
you have. It should usually include:
Those who make decisions about forest management (may be a professional forester, the
operation owners, the heads of households)
(If a group certificate) the group members and group manager
(if a community) relevant community leaders and/or assembly of community members,
and/or the community decision-making body.
Anyone who is being asked to take part in monitoring activities
Build the agreed monitoring activities into the regular tasks of forest management. Make time
to present and discuss the results of monitoring into the same meetings you would normally
have to discuss permits, harvesting, profits and planning for the coming year.
If you already have a calendar or diary with annual activities, add the monitoring jobs to this.
Or make a wall-chart to remind people what needs to be done.

Some general guidance for monitoring

Only collect information that you need.

Keep it simple!
Keep it relevant! Make sure you collect information that will allow you
to make meaningful decisions about whether your forest is healthy, and
whether the things you are trying to protect are being protected.
Discuss the results! Dont just collect them and file them away
make a presentation to the decision makers, whether they are forest
owners, community leaders, or professional foresters. Discuss what
they mean.
Use the results! Use the discussion about the monitoring information
to make changes to or improve the way the forest is managed. If you
dont you have wasted a lot of time (and possibly money) collecting
them for nothing!
Use the existing organizational or management structures in your
operation. Whether that is a community, a private business or a state
operation, monitoring is much more likely to work if you make it part of
existing responsibilities, reporting and decision-making mechanisms.

FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

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 Section B: Step 3 - Monitor

Case study 3 simple community monitoring activities

The community of Analco, Mexico has around 950 ha of forest including oak, pine,
and montane cloud forest. With the help of a local NGO they identified their High
Conservation Value areas including areas of high concentrations of biodiversity,
and those providing critical services. Based on discussions about the use of the
forest, and the HCVs identified, the community agreed a series of management
actions and developed a simple monitoring plan with six things to monitor.
One of the High Conservation Values they identified is the critical role of the for-
ests in water supply. They play a role in aquifer regulation within a larger water-
shed which supplies important large dams, and they are critical for maintaining the
quality and quantity of water supplies to the community itself it is the only source
of drinking water.
They agreed two monitoring actions related to the protection of water sources and
streams:
What to monitor, and why.
a. The flow of water in the springs and streams in order to see seasonal varia-
tions and year to year variations.
b. Visual checks to see if the no-go zones around the water sources are being
respected.
How we are going to do it
a. A simple system of monitoring wells (piezometers) of the main sources, with a
notebook for registering measurements.
b. Periodic visits to detect any vegetation disturbance at the water sources
(springs, streams) or signs of activities such as grazing, dredging of material,
or use of pollutants. Also note the presence of any tree infections.
Who will do the monitoring, and how often?
a. The communitys Oversight Committee, and the head of the Drinking Water
Committee, will take at least one measurement in the rainy season, and one in
the dry season, every year.
b. The Oversight committee will carry out the visits at least once a year and in-
form the community, and the communal and municipal authorities of the results
With whom will the results be discussed, and how will the results be used?
For both monitoring actions (a and b) the results will be discussed among the
community, with the participation of the Community authorities, oversight commit-
tee, municipal leader, technical advisor and the NGOs and academics who provide
technical support to the community. The results will be used to take decisions
which balance the objectives of development and conservation these could be
FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

changes to the forest management plan, or to internal community practices.

Yolanda Lara Padilla + Filemn Manzano Mendez, ERA A.C., Oaxaca, Mexico

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Forest Stewardship Council

Tips for community operations: monitoring

Discuss how to measure the conservation aspects of the forest during a com-
munity meeting or even better while walking through the forest.
Even if for most members of your community the concept of monitoring or
indicators is not very familiar many community members will have good
ideas about how to find ways of measuring the health of the forest, that are
simple, low cost, and fit in with their regular routines. Use these ideas.
Invite a national or international conservation group to use your forest as a site
for monitoring birds animals or vegetation. In return they could give you a
short report on any changes they find.

Monitoring wildlife and hunting

If you have identified the presence of rare or endangered species of birds or animals, you may
want to monitor whether their numbers are increasing or decreasing.
However, it can be complicated and expensive to count animals.
Instead of monitoring the animal itself, you might consider:
Monitoring the presence of the habitat, (vegetation, food sources, breeding areas) that the
animal needs to survive.
Using signs of the animals presence (e.g. nests, feeding sites, prints, or excrement).
Asking for help from universities or research centers. They may have access to specialist
equipment for monitoring animal populations, e.g. netting for birds and bats, camera traps
for photographing wild animals etc. They often carry out studies over a wide area, and
might welcome using your community as one of their sites.
FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

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41 of 55
Section B: Step 3 - Monitor

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Forest Stewardship Council

Case study 4 using hunting calendars for monitoring

In the state of Acre, in North-East Brazil

extractivist families have traditionally relied
heavily on the forest and rivers for timber,
fruits, oils, and seeds, with fishing and wild-
life hunting providing an important source of
protein.
When some families formed a group to apply for FSC forest management certifica-
tion, the certifiers identified the importance of understanding and monitoring the
level of hunting in the forests. A simple hunting calendar was developed.
Families use the calendar to record how many animals are hunted each month
by placing a cross near the picture of the animal they hunted. The totals of animals
hunted by the community are calculated at the end of each year and presented at
community meetings.
The monitoring calendar is a relatively new idea, and there are challenges associ-
ated with getting all the community members to use it especially those who are
not part of the group carrying out timber extraction and applying for certification.
However as a result of the calendars community discussions have been stimulated
about the impact of hunting and the relationship between the number of animals
caught and the variations in sighting of these animals.
Already it is clear that through these discussions the communities are generating
their own ideas about how to address these issues. Some proposals include the
identification of protected areas for fauna conservation within the community, the
establishment of seasons for hunting certain animals avoiding their reproduction
period -, and the prohibition of hunting with dogs.
Patricia Cota Gomes, Imaflora, Brazil FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

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 Section C: C1. Contiguous forest properties in an FSC group

SECTION C: HCVF AND BIODIVERSITY MANAGEMENT BY GROUPS OF FOR-

EST OPERATIONS

The advice in this section is applicable to groups of operations such as members of a coop-
erative, or a group certification scheme.
There is huge variation between the types of groups of forest operations. There is variation in,
the size of their forest areas, intensity of operations, forest types, the geographical arrange-
ment of their forest areas (e.g. shared blocks of forest vs. scattered plots in a wider land-
scape), in the they way they are organized and the degree to which they take collective deci-
sions.
Due to this variation, it is appropriate for different sorts of groups to manage biodiversity and
HCV forests in different ways.
It will very often prove cost-effective to collect biodiversity information as a group, but man-
agement decisions may be taken at the individual level or at the group level, depending on the
group context, and organizational structure.
The group manager and group members will need to use their judgment and agree at what
level they wish to handle the biodiversity and HCV aspects of their group certification, in order
to implement the requirements of the FSC standard for their own particular case. They should
document that decision so that the responsibility for managing biodiversity and HCVs is clear
and well understood by all.
Every group is different, but it is possible to make general recommendations for particular
types of group. There are three main scenarios, which can benefit from different strategies.
In all cases, the documents presented by the group entity should show how the responsibility
for the identification, management and monitoring of High Conservation Values is divided be-
tween group manager and group members.

C1. Contiguous forest properties in an FSC group

Where properties are contiguous (i.e. properties are next to one another) and collectively have
ecological characteristics resembling a large single forest.

In this case it is likely to be appropriate to carry out some of the identification, management
and monitoring at a landscape level. Greater responsibility for managing identified values
would be expected at the group level although individual actions are likely to be needed at
the site-level.
In general the larger and more contiguous the properties the more they collectively resem-
FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

ble a single large forest the more appropriate it will be to take collective action, and the more
likely it is that a conservation management plan drawn up for the whole area will be more
beneficial and cost effective than many small-scale individual actions.

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Example

An area of 10,000 Ha of natural evergreen forest is managed by a cooperative of

several hundred small forest owners. The cooperative members forests are con-
tiguous and comprise almost 100% of the forest area. Although ownership is indi-
vidual the forest ecology is that of a large single forest tract.
An HCV and biodiversity assessment could be carried out at the forest level, to
identify the presence of different values, and how best they can be managed.
Some important biodiversity and high conservation values may be present across
the whole forest, and others may occur only in some of the owners properties.
Management and monitoring actions will therefore be needed at different levels.
For localized values (e.g. the occurrence of important concentrations of rare or-
chids) specific actions may need to be taken in particular forest plots, and none in
others (where no orchids are found). For widespread or generalized values (e.g.
the fact that the whole forest is a critical watershed for the supply of drinking water
to nearby communities), then all the forest owners may need to ensure that their
management takes into account the conservation of the value (e.g. by minimizing
soil erosion when carrying out extraction operations).
Common action on representative conservation zones may be particularly benefi-
cial and economic. For example, many rare species need relatively large areas of
forest with little disturbance, and cant be effectively maintained by setting aside
zones of a few Ha. Therefore, in order to maintain such a species (as required by
FSC) by acting individually, dozens or hundreds of forest owners might need to
substantially reduce their activities to minimize disturbance. However, if the forest
owners can collectively agree on a single, large set-aside area (based e.g. on ex-
pert advice on the species needs), and on a mechanism for making this work
economically, then this can maintain the species and allow normal operation eve-
rywhere else. It will also be easier to monitor a single conservation zone than
many small individual zones.
Individual group members may need to take particular monitoring actions to check
for the continued presence of the value, or of the species concerned. For other
values, the group could agree a monitoring plan which includes some measure-
ments which are useful for the overall impact of group management (eg. sediment
load in the streams downstream).
Note: even with contiguous properties, the forest managers responsible for the
individual properties will need to carry out some identification, management and
monitoring at the individual property-level.
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 Section C: C2. Small forest plots in a non-forest landscape

C2. Small forest plots in a non-forest landscape

The group members forests represent forest islands in a non-forest landscape (e.g. small
woodlots scattered among an agrarian landscape).
In this case it is less likely that values identified will benefit from collective management, as
the management actions of each member have little effect on what is going on elsewhere. It is
perfectly reasonable for each plot owner to make his/her own decisions about managing the
environmental values identified, so long as these are informed by adequate information and
consultation. If everyone acts responsibly, in most cases, this will be sufficient to maintain the
values identified.
Of course it may still be appropriate to develop some group-level identification, management
or monitoring to reduce costs.

Example

A large group of small woodlots of a few Ha each in a landscape of pasture and

grasslands, where the woodlots are scattered throughout the landscape. The FSC
group members may or may not be responsible for management of all of the land.
The degree of similarity in biodiversity identified on the members properties is likely
to be directly related to the similarity in vegetation types and management regimes
across different woodlots. It is quite unlikely that such small woodlots would contain
HCVs i.e. nationally critical values, but it would still probably be economical to gather
biodiversity information as a group, especially if all the woodlots are quite similar.
Any significant species or HCV in this scenario would be likely to be highly localized,
and therefore, the members would have a more individual duty to check their proper-
ties in relation to national species lists and an HCV handbook.
In the case of individual small woodlots, there may be little sense in setting aside
representative conservation areas, as the size of these areas will be too small to
maintain the sorts of species and ecosystem functions that require undisturbed for-
est. Species in such small forest areas are likely to be generalists which will thrive in
disturbed forest so long as the structure is not too seriously damaged, and hunting is
controlled. The onus will be on individual members to demonstrate that their man-
agement is aimed at maintaining the structure and species balance of the forest.
FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

C3. Small forest plots in a non-FSC forest landscape

Group members forests form part of a large forest landscape but the group members proper-
ties are not contiguous. Other forest properties within the forest landscape are subject to dif-
ferent management regimes, and do not form part of the certified group.

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Forest Stewardship Council

In this case, it is again likely to be cost-effective to gather information on the biodiver-

sity/HCVs at the group level. In this case, the management actions of each member may have
some effect on what is going on elsewhere in the forest, including neighbors and further afield,
and effective management of environmental values is likely to involve both group-level and
individual level management strategies. Each plot owner should manage localized values in-
dividually, but also try and coordinate with other group members to manage widespread val-
ues collectively and influence non-group neighbors to act responsibly.
The actions (or non-actions) of those forest properties which dont form part of the group may
need to be noted as risks or threats to the effective management of the value. The man-
agement plans should record that the group members may not be able to control these threats
however, it will usually be appropriate to develop some simple strategy to try to work with
the non-group properties to manage the risk.

Example

In a tropical moist forest region individual families manage specific tracts of forest
land for NTFP harvesting and limited low intensity timber extraction. The plots are
contiguous, but some families have not joined the forest management group which
is seeking FSC certification; they may be carrying out unsustainable practices in
relation to hunting wild animals, or harvesting timber.
The group would probably benefit from gathering information at the group level to
identify those values which are across the whole forest area. Some management
and conservation actions should be decided at a group level for example, it may
be necessary to protect a particular stream or wetland which runs through several
properties, or for all group members to adopt rules about limiting hunting of particu-
lar mammal species.
The lack of participation by the non-group forest families should be noted as a risk
to the values identified, and action should be taken to engage with them to try to
make sure that their actions dont impact on the values. In practice this might mean
working with them to control hunting, or to protect river vegetation. The certifiers
are likely to look for evidence that the certified group has tried to manage this
threat as best as possible however the actual actions of their neighbors are be-
yond their control and they would not expect to be penalized for this.
In this case, it is possible that many species typical in large or less-disturbed for-
ests can persist in this wholly forested landscape. It is possible that several fami-
lies acting together could collectively set aside an effective conservation zone,
either along their common borders, or close enough together to be useful to sensi-
FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

tive species. Alternatively, the members will need to demonstrate that their activi-
ties do not materially affect the biodiversity and/or HCVs.

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 Reference sections

REFERENCE SECTIONS

1. FSC forest management certification

Forest management certification involves an independent assessment of how the forest is
being managed. There is more than one forest certification program, but FSC the Forest
Stewardship Council is widely regarded as the most credible program.
FSC aims to promote and reward responsible forest management. To earn FSC certification
and the right to use the FSC label, an organization must first adapt its management and op-
erations to conform to all applicable FSC requirements. Certification is voluntary. A certificate
is awarded to those forest operations whose management meets the requirements of the
FSCs Principles and Criteria. The certificate provides reassurance that this is a responsibly
managed forest.
An auditor or a team of auditors will visit the forest, study management plans, ownership doc-
uments or other paperwork and interview people such as workers and neighbors in order to
decide whether the 10 principles are being met.
The 10 principles, together with some additional & more specific wording that tells the auditor
exactly what to look for, are known as a standard. Standards describe the requirements that
need to be met in order for a forest operation to be certified. Standards are slightly different
for each country, because they have been adapted to use words, and require practices which
are relevant for that country, or region.

The 10 Principles of the FSC certification system

5 Compliance with laws and FSC principles

6 Tenure and use rights and responsibilities
7 Indigenous peoples rights
8 Community relations and workers rights
9 Benefits from the forest
10 Environmental impact
11 Management plan
12 Monitoring and assessment
13 Maintenance of high conservation value forests
14 Plantations
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Forest Stewardship Council

Below you will find the full text of Principles 6, 8 and 9. These are most closely related
to the topic of this guide the identification, management and monitoring of biodiver-
sity and High Conservation Value Forests.

Principle 6: Environmental impact

Forest management shall conserve biological diversity and its associated values, water re-
sources, soils, and unique and fragile ecosystems and landscapes, and, by so doing, maintain
the ecological functions and the integrity of the forest.
6.1 Assessment of environmental impacts shall be completed appropriate to the scale,
intensity of forest management and the uniqueness of the affected resources and
adequately integrated into management systems. Assessments shall include land-
scape level considerations as well as the impacts of on-site processing facilities. Envi-
ronmental impacts shall be assessed prior to commencement of site-disturbing Opera-
tions.
6.2 Safeguards shall exist which protect rare, threatened and endangered species and
their habitats (e.g., nesting and feeding areas). Conservation zones and protection ar-
eas shall be established, appropriate to the scale and intensity of forest management
and the uniqueness of the affected resources. Inappropriate hunting, fishing, trapping
and collecting shall be controlled.
6.3 Ecological functions and values shall be maintained intact, enhanced, or restored, in-
cluding:
a) Forest regeneration and succession.
b) Genetic, species, and ecosystem diversity.
c) Natural cycles that affect the productivity of the forest ecosystem.

6.4 Representative samples of existing ecosystems within the landscape shall be protected
in their natural state and recorded on maps, appropriate to the scale and intensity of
operations and the uniqueness of the affected resources.
6.5 Written guidelines shall be prepared and implemented to: control erosion; minimize
forest damage during harvesting, road construction, and all other mechanical distur-
bances; protect water sources.
6.6 Management systems shall promote the development and adoption fo environmentally
friendly non-chemical methods of pest management and strive to avoid the use of
chemical pesticides. World Health Organization Type 1A and 1B and chlorinated hy-
drocarbon pesticides; pesticides that are persistent, toxic or whose derivatives remain
biologically active and accumulate in the food chain beyond their intended use; as well
as any pesticides banned by international agreement, shall be prohibited. If chemicals
are used, proper equipment and training shall be provided to minimize health and envi-
FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

ronmental risks.
6.7 Chemicals, containers, liquid and solid non-organic wastes including fuel and oil shall
be disposed of in an environmentally appropriate manner at off-site locations.

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 Reference sections

6.8 Use of biological control agents shall be documented, minimized, monitored and strictly
controlled in accordance with national laws and internationally accepted scientific pro-
tocols. Use of genetically modified organisms shall be prohibited.
6.9 The use of exotic species shall be carefully controlled and actively monitored to avoid
adverse ecological impacts.
6.10 Forest conversion to plantations or non-forest land uses shall not occur, except in cir-
cumstances where conversion:
a) entails a very limited portion of the forest management uni; and
b) does not occur on high conservation value forest areas; and
c) will enable clear, substantial, additional, secure, long-term conservation benefits
across the forest management unit.

Principle 8 Monitoring and assessment

Monitoring shall be conducted appropriate to the scale and intensity of forest management
to assess the condition of forest, yields of forest products, chain of custody, management ac-
tivities and their social and environmental impacts.
8.1 The frequency and intensity of monitoring should be determined by the scale and in-
tensity of forest management operations as well as the relative complexity and fragility
of the affected environment. Monitoring procedures should be consistent and replicable
over time to allow comparison of results and assessment of change.
8.2 Forest management should include the research and data collection needed to moni-
tor, at a minimum, the following indicators:
a) Yield of all forest products harvested.
b) Growth rates, regeneration and condition of the forest.
c) Composition and observed changes in the flora and fauna.
d) Environmental and social impacts of harvesting and other operations.
e) Costs, productivity, and efficiency of forest management.
8.3 Documentation shall be provided by the forest manager to enable monitoring and certi-
fying organizations to trace each forest product from its origin, a process known as the
chain of custody.
8.4 The result of monitoring shall be incorporated into the implementation and revision of
the management plan.
8.5 While respecting the confidentiality of information, forest managers shall make publicly
available a summary of the results of monitoring indicators, including those listed in Cri-
terion 8.2
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Forest Stewardship Council

Principle 9 Maintenance of high conservation value forests

Management activities in high conservation value forests shall maintain or enhance the attrib-
utes which define such forests. Decisions regarding high conservation value forests shall al-
ways be considered in the context of a precautionary approach.
9.1 Assessment to determine the presence of the attributes consistent with High Conserva-
tion Value Forests will be completed, appropriate to scale and intensity of forest man-
agement.
9.2 The consultative portion of the certification process must place emphasis on the identi-
fied conservation attributes, and options for the maintenance thereof.
9.3 The management plan shall include and implement specific measures that ensure the
maintenance and/or enhancement of the applicable conservation attributes consistent
with the precautionary approach. These measures shall be specifically included in the
publicly available management plan summary.
9.4 Annual monitoring shall be conducted to assess the effectiveness of the measures em-
ployed to maintain or enhance the applicable conservation attributes.

2. Where to get more information

If this document is translated into other languages, and/or national versions produced, this
section should have locally-relevant publications and contact information or resources avail-
able in the language used in the publication:

FSC
The Resource Center of the FSC international website contains all FSC international stan-
dards, policies, and guidance, and all of the approved national FSC standards
www.fsc.org/resourcescenter.html
FSC in nationally represented National Initiatives in more than 50 countries. See the list
on the FSC Resource Centre website. Many of these have their own websites with locally-
relevant information.
{National Adaptation: Replace last paragraph with name and contact details of your national
initiative}

FSC certification bodies

There are currently more than 12 organizations approved by FSC to carry out forest man-
agement certification assessments and award FSC Forest Management certificates. For a list
of all FSC accredited certification bodies, go to the website of ASI (Accreditation Services In-
FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

ternational) www.accreditation-services.com
{National Adaptation: Put here the names and contact details of CBs that operate in your
country}

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 Reference sections

Organizations that support forest conservation and the HCV concept and have pro-
jects on the ground in many countries:

WWF, www.wwf.org
Conservation International (CI), www.conservation.org
The Nature Conservancy , www.nature.org
{National Adaptation: Add also websites of local offices and the names and contact details of
national and local organizations that are aware of HCVF concept and/or work with conserva-
tion, or with forest peoples}

Sources of guidance about High Conservation Values

High Conservation Value Resource Network. This network has been set up to promote coop-
eration, collaboration and consistency in the use of the HCV concept, to enable local-level
approaches to implementation. www.hcvnetwork.org

FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

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Forest Stewardship Council

3. Glossary of useful terms

Term Definition
Audit A systematic, independent and documented process for obtaining au-
dit evidence and evaluating it objectively to determine the extent to
which the audit criteria are fulfilled (ISO 19011:2002 (E)).
Audit criteria A set of policies, procedures or requirements (ISO 19011:2002 (E)).
In the context of FSC it is the Forest Management Standard which is
used by the auditors.
Auditor Person with the competence to conduct an audit (ISO 19011:2002
(E)).
In the context of FSC this usually refers to someone employed by an
auditing company (e.g. certification body) to perform the initial as-
sessment or annual audits of operations who wish to have their forest
management evaluated for certification.
Biodiversity The variability among living organisms from all sources including, ter-
restrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological com-
plexes of which they are part; this includes diversity within species,
between species and of ecosystems.
Certification Process of verifying that a particular standard of forest management
has been met. A certificate is awarded to demonstrate compliance
with the standard.
Certification bodies Also known as certifiers. The organizations that carry out the certifi-
cation (using an audit, assessment or other means to evaluate the
operation).
Ecosystem A community of plants and animals and their surroundings, which are
dependent on each other.
Endangered spe- Any species which is in danger of extinction throughout all or a signifi-
cies cant portion of its range.
Evaluation A more in-depth study than monitoring, taking place at a specific point
in time (not ongoing).
FMU Forest management unit
FSC Forest Stewardship Council
FSC standard Forest Stewardship standards are the forest management require-
ments that a forest operation must meet to become FSC certified. FSC
has a set of international Principles and Criteria. Certification evalua-
FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

tions are usually carried out using a more detailed set of Principles,
Criteria and Indicators which have been developed nationally. The
certification bodies use this to evaluate the performance of a forest
operation.

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Group certification Group certification is a way for more than one forest operation to be
certified under a single FSC certificate. The certificate is held by one
organization or person on behalf of a group of forest owners or man-
agers who agree to participate in the group.
Groups of SLIMFs A group of forest operations that all qualify as either small or low in-
tensity. Groups of SLIMFs may qualify for special streamlined certifi-
cation procedures.
Habitat The environment in which an animal or plant lives, generally defined in
terms of vegetation and physical features. (WCMC definition)
High Conservation Attributes of the forest which are special or critical. The High Conser-
Values vation Values are:
HCV 1: Globally, regionally or nationally significant con-
centrations of biodiversity values (this includes: protected
areas; rare or threatened species; endemic species; and
seasonal concentrations of species)
HCV 2: Globally, regionally or nationally significant large
landscapelevel forests
HCV 3: Forest areas that are in or contain rare, threat-
ened or endangered ecosystems
HCV 4: Forest areas that provide basic services of nature
in critical situations (This includes: protection of water-
sheds, protection against erosion and destructive fire)
HCV 5: Forest areas fundamental to meeting basic needs
of local communities
HCV 6: Forest areas critical to local communities tradi-
tional cultural identity
[note that these have the same content as the FSC glossary definition
it is just a different way of presenting them]
High Conservation High Conservation Value Forests are those that possess one or more
Value Forests of the following attributes:
(HCV)
a) forest areas containing globally, regionally or nationally significant:
FSC Glossary
concentrations of biodiversity values (e.g. endemism, endangered
Definition
species, refugia); and/or large landscape level forests, contained
within, or containing the management unit, where viable popula-
tions of most if not all naturally occurring species exist in natural
patterns of distribution and abundance
b) forest areas that are in or contain rare, threatened or endangered
ecosystems
FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002

c) forest areas that provide basic services of nature in critical situa-

tions (e.g. watershed protection, erosion control)
d) forest areas fundamental to meeting basic needs of local commu-
nities (e.g. subsistence, health) and/or critical to local communi-

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ties traditional cultural identity (areas of cultural, ecological, eco-

nomic or religious significance identified in cooperation with such
local communities).
[note that this has the same content as the 6 HCV values commonly
used by FSC national initiatives. it is simply a different presentation
of the same idea]
Landscape A geographical mosaic composed of interacting ecosystems resulting
from the influence of geological, topographical, soil, climatic, biotic and
human interactions in a given area.
Monitoring A process of collecting information routinely and systematically against
a plan, to answer questions about what is happening, and what the
impacts of a particular project or intervention are.
SLIMFs: Small Forest management units may be classed as SLIMF small when
they are 100 ha or smaller in area.
[Forest Management Units of up to 1000 ha. in area may be classed
as SLIMF units when this is formally proposed by the FSC approved
national initiative for the country concerned, or in countries in which
there is no FSC approved national initiative when this has the demon-
strated broad support of national stakeholders in the country con-
cerned]
SLIMF Small and Low Intensity Managed Forests. A category of operations
which, under the FSC system, may be subject to special streamlined
certification requirements.
SLIMFs: Low inten- Forest management units may be classed as low intensity when:
sity
a) the rate of harvesting is less than 20% of the mean annual incre-
ment (MAI) within the total production forest area of the unit, AND
b) EITHER the annual harvest from the total production forest area is
less than 5000 cubic metres,
c) OR the average annual harvest from the total production forest is
less than 5000 m3 / year during the period of validity of the certifi-
cate as verified by harvest reports and surveillance audits.
A forest management unit consisting of natural forest in which only
NTFPs are harvested.
Threatened spe- Any species which is likely to become endangered within the foresee-
cies able future throughout all or a significant portion of its range.
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Reference sections

FSC, A.C. All rights reserved. FSC-SECR-0002