Forest Certification in Boreal Forests: Current Developments and Future Directions

McDermott, Constance L.; Elbakidze, Marine; Teitelbaum, Sara; Tysiachniouk, Maria

doi:10.1007/978-3-031-15988-6_21

Cited by 3 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…environmental non-governmental organizations (NGOs) led to shifts in silvicultural management practices and to the introduction of forest certification schemes and changes in legislation (Larsson and Danell 2001;Arnesen et al 2004;FAO 2020). The most used certification schemes in the world are the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC) (FSC® International 2023a;McDermott et al 2023;PEFC Council 2023). Globally, 160 million and 292 million hectares of forestland are certified according to the FSC and PEFC standards, respectively (FSC® International 2023a;PEFC Council 2023).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effectiveness of conservation measures to support biodiversity in boreal timber-production forests

Tange,

Sjølie,

Austrheim

2024

Silva Fenn

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Large parts of the boreal forest ecosystems have been greatly affected by human use, and the current timber-oriented forest management practice that dominates boreal forests is proven to cause biodiversity and ecosystem services declines. These negative effects are mitigated in various ways, including in-situ measures implemented upon harvest. The measures comprise trade-offs between economic and ecological aims; thus, requiring solid knowledge of their effectiveness. However, comprehensive literature review of the effectiveness of such measures is scarce. We aim to fill part of this void by reviewing the scientific literature that have gauged effects of four in-situ conservation measures: green tree retention (GTR), patch retention (PR), dead wood retention (DW) and riparian buffer zones (RB). Two outcomes were considered, species richness and species abundance across taxa. From a total of 3012 initial papers, 48 met our inclusion criteria that generated 238 unique results. Results were grouped according to control. 178 studies used mature, unlogged forest as control. Out of those, 68% of the findings were not significant, i.e., suggesting no significant impact of harvest with biodiversity measures on species richness and species abundance compared to no harvest. Eighteen percent of the observations showed negative effects and 14% of the observations showed positive effects compared to no harvest. Sixty studies used harvest with no measures as control, of which 45% showed significant positive effects, meaning that compared to harvest with no measures, harvest with conservation measures has positively effects on species richness and abundance. However, 43% of the studies found no significant effect of the implemented conservation measures compared to harvest with no measures taken. The relatively few significant results reported restrain distinct conclusions on the effectiveness of the assessed conservation measures, but some degree of conservation measure is likely to have positive effects on biodiversity in timber-production forest. However, the scientific basis does not allow for pointing to threshold levels. Higher transparency of study design and statistical results would allow us to include more studies. There is a clear need for more research of effectiveness of common conservation measures in timber-production forests in order to strengthen the knowledge basis. In particular, there are few studies that employ harvest without any conservation measure as control. This is pivotal knowledge for forest managers as well as for policymakers for preserving biodiversity and the ecosystems in forest.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Measures are typically categorised based on their conservation aim, e.g., old trees as habitats for saproxylic species. However, the effects of these measures to support biodiversity and ecological services within timber-production forests are debated (Palik and D'Amato 2017;Lehtonen et al 2021;McDermott et al 2023).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effectiveness of conservation measures to support biodiversity in boreal timber-production forests

Tange,

Sjølie,

Austrheim

2024

Silva Fenn

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Enhancing Resilience of Boreal Forests Through Management Under Global Change: a Review

Triviño

Potterf

Tijerín-Triviño

et al. 2023

Curr Landscape Ecol Rep

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Purpose of Review Boreal forests provide a wide range of ecosystem services that are important to society. The boreal biome is experiencing the highest rates of warming on the planet and increasing demand for forest products. Here, we review how changes in climate and its associated extreme events (e.g., windstorms) are putting at risk the capacity of these forests to continue providing ecosystem services. We further analyze the role of forest management to increase forest resilience to the combined effects of climate change and extreme events. Recent Findings Enhancing forest resilience recently gained a lot of interest from theoretical perspective. Yet, it remains unclear how to translate the theoretical knowledge into practice and how to operationalize boreal forest management to maintain forest ecosystem services and functions under changing global conditions. We identify and summarize the main management approaches (natural disturbance emulation, landscape functional zoning, functional complex network, and climate-smart forestry) that can promote forest resilience. Summary We review the concept of resilience in forest sciences, how extreme events may put boreal forests at risk, and how management can alleviate or promote such risks. We found that the combined effects of increased temperatures and extreme events are having negative impacts on forests. Then, we discuss how the main management approaches could enhance forest resilience and multifunctionality (simultaneous provision of high levels of multiple ecosystem services and species habitats). Finally, we identify the complementary strengths of individual approaches and report challenges on how to implement them in practice.

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Forest certification and economic insights: a European perspective

Corticeiro,

Brás,

Tomé

et al. 2024

Front. For. Glob. Change

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In recent years, there has been an increasing demand for forest certification and certified forest products in Europe. This trend is related to major worldwide challenges, such as the need to decarbonize the economy and mitigate climate change but also social and consumer demands for wider fair trade. However, whether forest certification influences economic valorization in forestry remains a question. The aim of this study is to analyze forest certification levels across Europe and identify potential relationships between the level of certification in forest areas and relevant economic indicators at country level. This study collected openly available data on total and certified forest areas, economic indicators, and environmental indicators for 28 European countries and explored the correlation between certified forest areas and economic performance in the forestry sector. Findings show that forest certification can significantly improve the economic performance of European forests. It has a more pronounced positive effect on economic incomes than on costs’ reduction. While certification costs do rise with the extent of forest area, they tend to stabilize at larger scales, suggesting that the certification process is economically sustainable and scale is relevant. Czechia and the Netherlands stand out for having the highest net values added related to forest certification, reflecting an effective economic exploration of forest resources. This study offers new perspectives to natural and social scientists, as well as to industry and policy makers, by proving contextualized data to support decision making. Additionally, it provides hints for further studies and policy guidelines on sustainable development and the impact of forest certification schemes.

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Forest Certification in Boreal Forests: Current Developments and Future Directions

Cited by 3 publications

References 40 publications

Effectiveness of conservation measures to support biodiversity in boreal timber-production forests

Effectiveness of conservation measures to support biodiversity in boreal timber-production forests

Enhancing Resilience of Boreal Forests Through Management Under Global Change: a Review

Forest certification and economic insights: a European perspective

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