Japanese forest certification scheme open for public consultation
Stakeholders globally are invited to provide feedback on its compliance with PEFC International’s Sustainability Benchmarks by 13 July 2015.
Japanese forest certification scheme open for public consultation
12 May 2015 PEFC system news
Japan’s Sustainable Green Ecosystem Council (SGEC) has applied for the endorsement and mutual recognition of the Japanese Forest Certification System by PEFC.
Stakeholders globally are invited to provide feedback on its compliance with PEFC International’s Sustainability Benchmarks by 13 July 2015.
SGEC, which joined PEFC only in November 2014, is the largest forest certification system in Japan. Established in 2003, SGEC focusses on promoting sustainable forest management and forest certification especially among the 2.5 million small- and family owners who own at least 0.1 hectares of forests. While the average forest holding is 2.7 hectares, some 1.5 million forest owners own less than 1 hectare of – often fragmented – forests.
PEFC rules stipulate that national forest certification systems that want to be recognized by PEFC must comply with its Sustainability Benchmarks, a suite of requirements for a range of issues related to forest certification, from standards development processes and sustainable forest management requirements themselves through to Chain of Custody, logo use and accreditation requirements. Compliance is verified through an independent assessment.
The global stakeholder consultation is an important part of the assessment, enabling all interested parties to provide insights and information on the system’s compliance with PEFC requirements.
Stakeholders are encouraged to submit comments on the SGEC Certification Scheme using PEFC's Online Consultation Tool by 13 July 2015