WWF Positions for COP 11

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Aug 31, 2012, 10:13:13 AM8/31/12
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From: Wally Menne <wal...@iafrica.com>
To: biodiv...@yahoogroups.com; Rolf Hogan <rho...@wwfint.org>
Sent: Friday, 31 August 2012 3:58 AM
Subject: Re: [biodiv_civsoc] WWF Positions for COP 11

 
Thanks Rolf
 
Not bad overall, but I do have a problem with the way FSC certification is being promoted by WWF in its REDD+ (and Biofuels) position:
 
"Encourages Parties to support and promote credible commodity production standards and certification systems such as the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Principles and Criteria as meaningful and complementary instruments to support the application, monitoring, reporting and verification of REDD+ safeguards"
 
Whilst there may be some isolated instances where timber industry self-regulation using "independent certification" appears to have worked, in most cases this would already have happened with or without certification thanks to some private plantation or forest owners having the necessary high ethical and conservation values. However the bulk of FSC certified plantations are owned by murky corporate entities with continuously changing management structures and high staff turnover, that do not allow for the development of any long term moral standard.
 
Thus for the bulk of the big timber plantation and logging companies, it appears FSC and its ilk (PEFC etc) have come to be little more than a cheap and convenient means to acquiring a fake green veneer. There are strong indications that rapidly increasing wasteful consumption of timber obtained from both forests and plantations over the past decade, during roughly the same period as FSC's most aggressive marketing of certified timber and timber products, is no mere coincidence. This can be seen very clearly in the case of IKEA's recent massive expansion in the production and selling of cheap throw-away wooden furniture items, some of which is manufactured from FSC certified ancient forest timber, "sustainably" logged in Russia by IKEA's subsidiary Swedwood.      
 
 
FSC is guilty of creating the myth that unlimited wasteful consumption of timber and wood-derived products is just fine as long as they come from an FSC rubber-stamped "responsibly managed" forest or plantation; and by association, WWF must therefore take partial responsibility for this debacle.
 
Furthermore, I believe that WWF's ongoing involvement in and support for FSC is jeopardising community based forest conservation efforts globally.
 
See you in Hyderabad.
 
Best wishes
Wally
 
Wally Menne
plan...@iafrica.com
Tel: +27 (0) 82 4442083
Skype: wally.menne

From: Rolf Hogan
Sent: Thursday, August 30, 2012 11:38 AM
Subject: [biodiv_civsoc] WWF Positions for COP 11

Hi everyone,

We finalised and circulated some WWF positions yesterday which are available here: www.panda.org/cop11

Several more papers are in preparation.

Cheers

Rolf

--
Rolf Hogan
Coordinator Biodiversity Policy

WWF International
Tel: +22 364 9391
E-mail: rho...@wwfint.org
Skype: ohogain



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