MAKE A POLICY
An environmentally responsible and sustainable procurement policy can be just as beneficial to your business or organisation as to the environment. Trends in society clearly point towards more stringent requirements for sustainable production and consumption.
Forests are vital to life
Forests regulate our climate, clean the air we breathe and are the source of much of our drinking water. They provide important habitats for 70% of terrestrial wildlife and plants.
The supply of forest-based materials around the world provides important resources and income. This is especially important for the many forest-dependent communities all over the globe.
If no safeguards are set, your procurement may lead to mismanagement of forests. This, in turn, often results in deforestation or degradation on a scale that jeopardises the many ecosystem services the forests provide.
What could be the scope for sustainable forest engagement:
Ensuring compliance with timber legality legislation
Obtaining own certification or involvement in project certification
Reduce – Reuse – Recycle / Circularity in general
Endangered species or ancient forest friendly
Risk mitigation of illegal timber being harvested in conflict areas
Timber species diversification
Innovation and tests of new technologies and alternative species
Involvement in forest projects
(e.g. ecosystem services, social projects, reforestation)Partnerships to promote/communicate responsible forestry (FSC)
Avoid operational and reputational risks
Responsible sourcing of wood can benefit company and projects in many ways.
Wood is more carbon and energy efficient in comparison to other building materials. However, wood may originate from unsustainable forest manage¬ment practices which can undermine its benefits. This risk can be mitigated by sourcing FSC-certified wood.
FSC takes integrity issues seriously and investigates them thoroughly by using certification audit data, manual transaction verification, fibre testing and other methods.
FSC has a Policy for Association which prohibits companies from becoming members of FSC or achieving FSC certification if they conduct controversial activities including on lands outside of certified areas.
USE Certification
as the backbone
The advantage of basing a procurement policy on the framework of a certification scheme like FSC is that the system provides well-known and robust solutions for documentation and Chain of Custody as a strong tool to implement policy goals.
Procuring FSC-certified forest products will simultaneously advance corporate social responsibility efforts while protecting one of our most valuable natural and environmental resources, namely our forests.
GET INSPIRED FOR YOUR OWN IMPLEMENTATION
The shipbuilding industry is increasingly expected to provide documentation for its environmental impact, and Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC®) has produced guides on how to implement, monitor and communicate policies for forest-based products.
These guides include recommendations on how to use FSC’s Chain of Custody solutions to document and communicate responsibly sourced forest-based products.
Inspiration
Implementation guide
Get inspired on your implementation
The shipbuilding industry is increasingly expected that to be able to provide documentation for its environmental impact, and Forest Stewardship Counsil® (FSC®) has produced some guides on how to implement, monitor and communicate a policy for forest-based products.
The guides include recommendations on how to use FSC’s Chain of Custody solutions to document and communicate responsibly sourced forest-based products.
