FSC regard legality as essential to responsible forest management worldwide. In fact, it is our first principle of responsible forest management. All countries with forests have rules to manage ownership and harvest rights, but the level of enforcement of these rules varies across the globe.
For this reason, several governments have, in the last decade, adopted ‘legislation for timber legality’: laws that ban the trading of timber that is harvested illegally anywhere on the planet. To prevent purchase and sales of timber products connected to illegal harvesting, these governments require companies to apply ‘due diligence’.
Illegal logging is a significant problem in many countries. It degrades forest environments, reduces biodiversity, undermines government regimes and revenues, contributes to greenhouse gas emissions and deprives local communities of opportunities to improve their quality of life.
According to The Department of Agriculture and Water Resource, Illegally logged is defined as timber harvested in contravention of laws in force in the place — whether or not in Australia — where the timber was harvested.
The Department of Agriculture and Water Resources has administered the illegal logging laws since they commenced in 2012. The laws make it a criminal offence to intentionally, knowingly or recklessly import illegally logged timber and timber products into Australia or to process domestically grown raw logs that have been illegally logged.
On Thursday 5th October, the Assistant Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources, Senator Anne Ruston announced the government had taken steps to cut red tape whilst ensuring illegally logged timber does not enter the Australian market. Third-party certification schemes will now be used as a tool by the government to fulfil the due diligence requirements for import products. In this way, direct certified suppliers will satisfy the ‘deemed to comply’ provisions of the legislation.
Suppliers who already FSC certified can rest assured that the relevant due diligence requirements have been met. As such, FSC certification ensures that the organisation is compliant with the relevant laws.
The Australian Government has a zero-tolerance policy towards importing wood or wood products that have come from illegally logged forests. The changes to the regulation simply provide for a fast-tracked due diligence process for companies that have FSC certification.
No, it is not compulsory for business to gain certification. However, companies that are FSC certified now have less regulatory obligations than non-certified companies.
Consumers are increasingly aware of, and concerned by, the origins of the products they buy and the processes that go into making them.
Certification benefits for business include:
1. Raises industry standards in forest management
2. Creates tangible economic benefits for your business
3. Creates stronger links between your business and your customers
4. Protects forest ecosystems and helps fight climate change
5. Ensures you will be up to date with government requirements
See the steps to becoming certified: https://au.fsc.org/en-au/for-business/steps-to-become-certified
For more information about illegal logging - http://www.agriculture.gov.au/forestry/policies/illegal-logging