Newsletter Stories


Friday, 18 October 2013
FSC certification and carbon claims

 (© MN DNR)© MN DNR

October 18, 2013


With increasing interest in claims that biomass used for energy production has substantial greenhouse gas emission-reduction results, without negative impacts on forest biodiversity, the Forest Stewardship Council International developed a short statement to clarify our position.

FSC certification of biomass can play an important role in protecting biodiversity. Especially where the use of biomass for energy production leads to intensified harvesting of forest materials, FSC certification can be an essential tool to prescribe and verify practices that protect ecosystem services and biodiversity. 

With regards to the carbon impact of biomass production, FSC is working on the implementation of its new Principles & Criteria, which will give more specific details regarding the carbon balance in forests used for biomass production. 

Overall, the carbon impacts of biomass production and use will remain beyond the scope of FSC certification,in particular emissions from production processes beyond the forest. 

So while we promote FSC certification of biomass to address ecological integrity and carbon storage capacity in forests, for climate policy purposes this must be complemented by credible carbon claims methodology, such as the one delivered by the Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials. 

FSC expects its Certificate Holders working in this area to be explicit about both the purpose and limitations of FSC certification of biomass for energy purposes. 

In the coming years, FSC will assess its potential for further contributions to the sustainable use of biomass, in both climate and biodiversity terms. 

Contact:
John Hontelez
Chief Advocacy Officer
FSC International
j.hontelez@fsc.org

Link: https://ic.fsc.org/newsroom.9.514.htm