International Issues Relating To The Forest Sector With Specific Reference
To Criteria And Indicators For Sustainable Forest Management In Malaysia+
by Thang Hooi Chiew*
1.0 Introduction
The world’s environment has been degraded by decades of industrial and
other forms of pollution, including unsafe disposal of toxic and hazardous
wastes, nuclear testing and unsustainable practices in agriculture, fishery and
forestry. The excessive consumption, especially of fossil fuels, has resulted in
the emission of substantive amount of greenhouse gases which has become a daily
affair.
In fact, the relationship between economic development and environmental
degradation was first placed on the international agenda in 1972 with the
convening of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, held in
Stockholm, Sweden. However, little was done in the intervening years to
integrate environmental imperatives into national economic planning and
decision-making.
By 1983, awareness about worldwide environmental stress has mounted resulting
in the Brundtland Commission’s report to conclude in 1987 that sustainable
development should be looked upon as an alternative approach to economic growth.
The report also noted that there was a "serious lack of funding for
conservation projects and strategies that improve the resource base for
development". In this context, environmental concerns are pervasive within
and between countries, and are of a local, national, and global nature. A
broad-based and integrated environmental strategy linked with sound economic and
social policies for sustainable development is necessary to address them. It is
evident that sound environmental management is an intrinsic part of the
sustainability of the development process.
In response to these environment and development concerns, the United Nations
at its Forty-fourth Session of the General Assembly held in March 1990 adopted
Resolution 44/228 which called for the convening of the United Nations
Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) which was held in Rio de
Janeiro, Brazil from 3 - 14 June, 1992. The major concern of developed countries
at the Conference also known as the Earth Summit on forest is on account that
forest is important, among others, for carbon dioxide (CO2)
sequestration, preservation of biological diversity and the maintenance of an
equable climate.
Since UNCED, global concern on the future of forest resources has grown in
earnest. In this context, global forest degradation and deforestation, the need
for sustainable forest management and related issues such as the loss of
biological diversity, mitigation of climate change and environmental degradation
have been seen as a widespread problem requiring international remedial actions.
A major consequence has been various unilateral actions advocated to halt
tropical forest degradation and deforestation, including among others, bans and
boycotts, and ecolabelling and certification of tropical timber.
This paper will attempt to highlight some of the major international issues
that are pertinent to the forest sector and which are currently being debated at
the global level, notably by the United Nations Commission on Sustainable
Development.
2.0 Forest Degration
Forest degradation corresponds to the progressive changes/losses of forest
resources in the context of species diversity and biomass, and are associated
with the degradation of the woody component of the forests which often goes
together with the degradation of the other components of the ecosystem,
especially fauna, soils and the herbaceous layer.
The major causes of forest degradation, among others, include selective
harvesting of high valued species, over-harvesting for fuelwood, over-hunting,
over-grazing and repeated fires. Other causes of degradation are pest and
diseases, natural calamities such as cyclones, and war damage.
Although logging is often a cause of forest degradation this need not be so
if the layout of forest roads has been carefully planned and constructed, and
appropriate actions taken to reduce the effects of excessive selective felling
and the damage caused by felling and logging.
It is extremely difficult and costly to quantitatively assess forest
degradation since changes corresponding to degradation are often gradual and
cannot be perceived and measured easily from one year to the next. Quantitative
data are generally lacking except when the changes are relatively rapid and can
be characterized by good indicators, and the monitoring capability exists, as in
the case of degradation caused by air pollution.
However, forest degradation has many important negative consequences on the
food security and well-being of present and future generations. Its effect in
especially sensitive areas such as mountain ecosystems is particularly serious
with further consequences on water cycles, soil stability and the loss of
genetic diversity found in those areas.
3.0 Combating Deforestation
According to the FAO’s State of the World’s Forest 1977 report (FAO,
1997), it was estimated that between the period 1990 - 1995, the world had
registered a net loss of 56.3 million hectares of forests, representing a
decrease of 65.1 million hectares in developing countries which was partly
offset by an increase of 8.8 million hectares in developed countries or an
annual net deforestation rate of 11.3 million hectares. The estimated amount of
total forested areas loss annually in the developing countries cover the same
period was 13.0 million hectares or equivalent to an annual rates of loss of
0.65%.
However, the annual deforestation rate of natural forests for the period 1990
- 1995 in developing countries was estimated to be 13.7 million hectares, as
compared to 15.5 million hectares for the period 1980 - 1990. Hence, although
deforestation continues to be significant in developing countries, the rate of
loss of natural forest between the periods 1980 - 1990 and 1990 - 1995 appears
to have decreased and it is hoped that this trend will continue into the next
century.
Contrary to popular belief, deforestation in developing countries is only
partly due to the exploitation and exports of timber to gain foreign exchange
as:-
- in 1994, of the US $114,000 million of forest products traded
internationally, the developing countries only accounted for less than 20%
or US $22,800 million of both exports and imports; and
- total forest plantations in the developing countries had more than doubled
from 40 million hectares in 1980 to 81 million hectares in 1995.
In fact, deforestation in developing countries is mainly due to the use of
wood for energy as:-
- an estimated 20% of the developing countries roundwood production is used
for industrial uses only, with the balance of 80% being used for fuelwood
and other non-industrial uses; and
- over 2,000 million people use wood for domestic heating and cooking and by
the year 2000 the world fuelwood deficit could reach 960 million cubic
metres a year, the energy equivalent of 240 million tonnes of oil a year or
US$30 billion a year based on current oil prices.
Recent studies on the nature and causes of deforestation in the developing
countries indicate that factors external to the forestry sector, such as
demographic pressure, changing consumption patterns, expansion of subsistence
agriculture in Africa and Asia, and large economic development programmes
involving resettlement, agriculture and infrastructure in Latin America and
Asia, are likely to continue to have more impact over the extent and condition
of the global forest resources than factors internal to, and directly controlled
by, the sector itself. In fact, the sustainability of the agricultural sector is
increasingly being recognized as a key to sustainable forestry.
In this context, the following actions should be taken to address the issue
on deforestation, namely:-
- a complete historical perspective regarding global deforestation in order
to facilitate a better and accurate understanding of the processes of
deforestation particularly in developed countries, rather than just
presenting a snapshot situation for specific periods;
- targets on "forest replacement" be agreed by developed and
developing countries;
- planned conversion of forests within the context of national socio-economic
development should not be considered as deforestation per se; and
- developed countries with ‘Low Forest Cover (LFC)’ and endowed with
suitable land and climate should take a firm lead in efforts towards the
greening of the world in accordance with Principle 8(a) of the Forest
Principles. Developed countries with LFC but with limited land and/or
unsuitable climatic conditions should assist developing countries with LFC
to increase their forest cover through adequate and appropriate transfer of
technology and financial resources.
4.0 Conservation Of Biological Diversity
Biological diversity refers to the variety and variability of all animals,
plants and micro-organisms on Earth. Some of this diversity is essential, in
that mankind is dependent on other species for the maintenance of the biosphere
and the supply of basic necessities, particularly food. A large proportion of
biological diversity is considered valuable because of the goods and services
provided by other species, and because of the potential inherent in what has
been described as the world’s most fundamental capital stock.
Recent surveys on a global basis suggest that there are about 1.4 million
documented species, and the general consensus is that this is an underestimate -
perhaps 5 - 50 million species exist. Each species contains up to 400,000 genes,
and virtually no two members of the same species are genetically identical.
Although the magnitude of the genetic resource is vast, so too is the current
rate of genetic loss. Species extinction rates are estimated at approximately 10
- 20,000 per year, or between 1,000 and 10,000 times faster than the natural
rate before human intervention (Wilson, 1988). One estimate has concluded that
the continuation of current tropical deforestation rates will lead to the loss
of approximately 25% of the world’s plant species in the next 20 years (IUCN et
al, 1990). While depending on the assumptions used, it may eliminate between
5% and 15% of species by the year 2020 (WRI, 1989). In fact, the rapid loss of
biological diversity in developing countries has become the subject of
increasing national and international concern.
In this context, the tropical forests which cover 1,760 million hectares or
50.9% of the world’s total forested areas are exceptionally rich in biological
resources. Half of all vertebrates, 60% of all known plant species, and possibly
90% of the world’s total species are found in tropical forests. In fact, the
greatest diversity of species is found in tropical moist forests. Although
covering only 7% of the land surface, these extraordinarily rich but fragile
habitats contain more than 50% of the species in the entire world biota.
It should be noted that the main causes of biological diversity loss are due
to habitat loss, degradation and fragmentation, resources over-exploitation,
species and genetic introductions, ignorance, pollution, and climatic change. Of
these, by far the most important is habitat loss. In this connection, currently,
approximately 5% of tropical moist forests are in legally gazetted national
parks or nature reserves. It has been suggested that a network of 500 protected
and managed areas, with an average size of 200,000 hectares, covering 10% of the
remaining forest areas be the minimum acceptable target (Anon, 1991).
In this regard, Malaysia acknowledges that forest harvesting often reduces
species diversity through physical disruption of habitats, poaching by logging
personnel and selective pressures on a few commercial species, and that these
problems are made worse by recutting the logged-over forests before they have
been adequately recovered. However, clear cutting would have even more damaging
effects and hence, the solution lies in improved selective harvesting practices.
It should also be recognized that totally protected areas can never be
sufficiently extensive to provide for the conservation of all ecological
processes and for all species. Thus, sustainable production of wood through
selective harvesting, particularly the tropical forest, is one of the most
effective ways in ensuring the conservation of the biological diversity of
forest ecosystems. Such selectively harvested and managed forest will retain
most of the forest structure and hence, the diversity of the primary forests
both in terms of numbers and population of species. The economic value of the
wood and the environmental benefits produced would fully justify investment in
maintaining the forest cover.
Furthermore, urgent steps should be taken to:-
- examine the need for and the feasibility of developing workable mechanisms
by which traditional knowledge, innovations and practices could be
effectively recognized, protected, compensated and paid for;
- formulate norms and criteria that would be used to establish
internationally agreed biogeographic areas for the conservation of
biological diversity within national jurisdiction. It should include the
identification of the biogeographic areas and the development of joint
mechanisms, as well as, the quantification of the costs involved and the
identification of sources of fund needed to managed and conserve these
areas; and
- establish an internationally agreed programme on liability and
compensation for unanticipated impacts of biotechnology application in using
genetic resources that may lead to health hazards and environmental damage.
5.0 Mitigation Of Climate Change
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has estimated a global
warming of about 3° C by the end of the next century
with a range of estimates from 2° C to 5°
C assuming a "business-as-usual" increase in greenhouse gases. A
consequence of a warmer climate would be a rise in global mean sea-level, due to
thermal expansion of the waters, and to the melting of glaciers and the
Greenland ice cap. Recent projections of sea-level rise are on the lower side of
earlier estimates, with the most probable increase for a doubled carbon dioxide
world (CO2) being 10 cm to 30 cm. However, if warming continues
towards the year 2100, as seems probable, a sea-level rise of as much as one
metre could well be achieved (Anon, 1989). A sea-level rise of one metre would
flood 15% of Bangladesh, some 12% - 15% of Egypt’s arable land, other
low-lying coastal areas and estuaries, and greatly reduce the size of many
island nations (Maldives, Vanuatu, etc.), making all these regions more
susceptible to devastating inundations due to surges during tropical storms (WMO,
1990).
Hence, there has been concerted effort by some developed countries to single
out deforestation as the main cause of CO2 emission. However,
deforestation and other activities associated with land use, as reflected in the
IPPC reports only account for 9% of the total CO2 emitted to the
atmosphere as compared to 75% CO2 emitted through other uses and
applications in developed countries, and that the tropical moist forests only
cover 7% of the total Earth’s land surface. In fact, studies have further
indicated that CO2 sink in the oceans is significantly more important
than that in the forests. Indeed it is believed that oceans absorb approximately
two-thirds of CO2 emission while forests about one-third.
Although increasing forest cover can contribute to carbon sequestration from
the atmosphere and in slowing the rate of global climate change, it must be kept
in mind that the major source of CO2, the principal greenhouse gas,
is still the burning of fossil fuels. Forests can provide some relief to what
must be considered primarily an energy problem. Deforestation and the burning of
forests are only additional sources.
In this context, forests may be both positively and negatively affected by
climate change. Higher mean temperatures, increased levels of atmospheric CO2,
and increased precipitation could result in increased growth rates and
productivity of some species, but climate change will induce the shifting and in
the first phase, reduction of the natural ranges of trees and other living
components of the forest ecosystems, loss of genetic variability, loss of
species and simplification of ecosystems, massive decline of forests and
increased incidence and severity of wildfire.
Furthermore, under Article 4 (Commitments) of the Framework Convention on
Climate Change dealing with the sustainable management, conservation and
enhancement of forests as sinks and reservoirs of greenhouse gases, notably CO2,
it should be underscored that comprehensive and in-depth studies be initiated on
the carbon cycle relating to total global budget, including absorption and
release of carbon from the different forest types, perennial agricultural tree
crops and the logged-over forests that are selectively harvested, especially the
tropical forests in developing countries, as well as, the impact of climate
change on all types of forests of the world.
6.0 Timber Certification
The proliferation of timber certification schemes may create problems for
timber producing countries. Criteria and indicators based on the environmental
conditions and needs of the importing country may be environmentally
inappropriate, given the local conditions in the country of production. There is
a need to avoid discrimination and adverse effects on trade in timber products
and as such there is also a need to liberalize trade and marketing of forest
products as this would enhance the realization of the full-cost pricing of such
products.
Certification of timber products should be consumer-driven and market-based.
Participation should also be on a voluntary basis. If incentives to subscribe to
timber certification is strong enough, importing countries would not need to
introduce unilateral legislation discriminating against imports of timber from
unsustainable sources. The success of timber certification introduced on a
voluntary basis will depend on whether consumers are willing to pay more
("green premium") for timber products produced from sustainably
managed sources.
As timber certification is an attempt to link trade, particularly
international trade, to sustainable forest management, concern has been
expressed that this may give consumers the impression that unlabelled products,
including those that have yet to be assessed, have been produced in an
environmentally unsustainable way. Moreover, unless carefully implemented,
certification may act as a non-tariff barrier to trade by discriminating either
intentionally or unintentionally against those unable or unwillingly to achieve
the required forest management standards.
In fact, the voluntary nature is required by the General Agreement on Tariffs
and Trade (GATT). Article XX of GATT requires that trade measures must not
discriminate between like products on the basis of the method of production. In
this regard, the "method" of timber production is essentially forest
management. This means, therefore, that legislation such as the 1990 Austrian
law which sought to discriminate between timber from sustainable and
unsustainable management contravenes GATT rules.
In this connection, any timber certification so developed should adhere to
the following principles:-
- certification must be applied to all timber and timber products, as well
as substitute materials such as steel, aluminum, cement and plastics;
- certification must be based on internationally agreed criteria and
indicators for sustainable forest management of all types of forests;
- certification must be based on a credible and realistic time-frame for the
attainment of sustainable forest management of all types of forests, and as
an integral element of internationally agreed criteria and indicators; and
- certification must not become a non-tariff trade barrier but rather should
serve as a trade incentive.
Although timber certification has been recognized as a potential tool to
promote sustainable forest management, the efficacy of this tool is still
subject to considerable debate at the international level. However, the success
of any timber certification scheme will most likely be dependent on the
following factors:-
- it should provide incentives for compliance by producing countries, such
as better prices and improved markets for timber products from sustainable
sources;
- a credible and manageable system for the tracking of timber from the
source to the market, as currently, logs from different sources are mixed at
the ports for exports and in processing mills and manufacturing plants; and
- the availability of internationally agreed criteria and indicators for
measuring sustainable forest management as there is still an ongoing debate
on what constitutes sustainable forest management.
Contrary to popular belief, timber certification is expensive. Resources are
needed for administrative personnel and procedures, product research and
publicity costs. Hence, manufacturers will only apply for the certificate or
label either if they think that it will genuinely help to promote the sales of
their products or if they feel that such promotional ventures as certification
and labeling may be needed to expand sales of their products. In either case,
manufacturers would only propose their products for certifying or labeling if
they feel that their products have an even chance of obtaining a certificate or
label or the costs in terms of changes in technology, etc., and that of
obtaining the certificate or label are not too high.
In view that most of these programmes are yet to be self-financing, it is
important the governments should participate in their development, especially in
countries where the forests are substantially owned by the governments, although
it is voluntary and market-driven, as governments may be in a better position to
ensure:-
- consistency of criteria and indicators;
- balance the views of the different parties;
- greater accountability to the public;
- greater programme transparency; and
- an additional channel for presenting their interest to labeling
authorities.
Moreover, further actions should be taken to:-
- develop enabling mechanisms for factoring "environmental costs and
benefits" into the prices of timber and timber products, especially
tropical timber and timber products, and the "removal of tariff
barriers and impediments to the provision of better market access and better
prices for higher value-added forest products" as reflected in
Principles 13(c) and 13(b) respectively of the Forest Principles;
- ensure that international trade in forest products should be
non-discriminatory, including the removal of bans and boycotts; and
- study the implications of the proliferation of timber certification
initiatives at various levels on trade in forest products, in particular at
the international level, and on efforts to enhance the management,
conservation and sustainable development of all types of forests. In this
context, timber certification schemes should be a consequence of sustainable
forest management.
7.0 Convention On The International Trade In Endangered Species Of Wild
Fauna And Flora (CITES)
Currently, concern has been expressed by forestry and trade interests that
CITES is being used to stop or limit trade as the criteria used for listing
species threatened with extinction are very broad and general, and are subject
to misuse by interested parties. For example, species or specimens of a species
are included under CITES even though they are not threatened with extinction if
they cannot be distinguished by a non-expert from those listed under CITES. This
has dire consequence for Malaysia for example, if a species of the red meranti
group of the genus Shorea is included in the CITES list, then many of the
other Shorea species in the red meranti group would also be included as
well, as it is very difficult to differentiate the various red meranti timber
products in the market place.
A species is also considered to be threatened with extinction if it meets, or
is likely to meet, among others, " an observed, inferred or projected
decline in the number of individuals or area and quality of habitat." This
would also have dire consequence for Malaysia as the harvesting of tree species
and the decline in forest areas in Malaysia could be taken to mean that species
are threatened with extinction.
Thus, there is an urgent need for the criteria used to list species under
CITES be refined so as to provide an equitable and fair mechanism in
safeguarding endangered species of wild fauna and flora both to producers and
consumers, and that this work should best be undertaken by the CITES Timber
Working Group formed in 1994. Furthermore, rules and procedures should also be
established as to who should have the right to proposed the listing of a species
and what are the rights of the affected countries, as well as, whether the
species proposed for listing are really endangered or threatened with
extinction.
8.0 Global Forest Convention
At UNCED, it was agreed that the international community should support the
implementation of the Forest Principles adopted at the Conference, and "on
the basis of the implementation of these Principles to consider the need and
feasibility of appropriate internationally agreed arrangements to promote
international cooperation on forest management, conservation and sustainable
development of all types of forests, including afforestation, reforestation and
rehabilitation" as reflected in paragraph 11.12 (e) of Chapter 11 -
Combating Deforestation under Agenda 21.
Hence, it is untenable that many of the developing countries with tropical
forests who are members of the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO)
are bound by an agreement which de-facto covers forestry in the form of
the International Tropical Timber Agreement (ITTA). Under the ITTA, tropical
timber producers are already subject to de-facto specific standards based
on ITTO guidelines on sustainable forest management. Hence, a Global Forest
Convention would "level the playing field" and in deterring the
"free riders" who currently benefit greatly from their use of
unsustainable forestry practices.
In this context, it is believed that a Global Forest Convention would :-
- bring about the additional financial assistance, technology transfer and
access to markets which are critical for the operationalization of all the
agreed proposals of action as recommended by the United Nations Commission
on Sustainable Development;
- fill the existing vacuum in many areas of international policy on forestry
and timber including the promotion of trade in sustainable produced forest
products. This would help the forestry sector to raise the necessary revenue
to finance sustainable forest management programmes which require sizeable
financial resources and technical know-how. Without such allocation of
resources which only a Global Forest Convention could promote, the forest
may not be able to survive the current rather ad-hoc international
legal and regulatory environments. A more predictable environment will also
attract the much needed private sector investment for sustainable forest
management;
- provide a balanced environment in which mutually supportive environmental
and economic interests co-exist and a platform to treat forests and related
issues in a comprehensive, holistic and integrated manner. This will replace
existing ineffective piece-meal approaches which discriminate against
tropical forests. Furthermore, commercial interests have not proved
detrimental to the successful elaboration of, for example, the Framework
Convention on Climate Change and the Convention on Biological Diversity; and
- enable international level action be taken to tackle trans boundary
underlying causes of forest loss and degradation such as international debt
and consumption patterns, and encourage co-operation in the transfer of
technology and financial assistance.
In this connection, any negotiation on protocols of forests under the
existing legally-binding environmental instruments such as the Convention on
Biological Diversity as called by Greenpeace, and the Framework Convention on
Climate Change would ‘destroy’ the agreement reach at UNCED that forest and
forest-related issues should be addressed in an integrated, holistic and
balanced manner. Without a Global Forest Convention addressing all types of
forests and all related issues in a comprehensive manner, then continuing
deforestation and biological loss will most surely come to pass and in an
accelerated fashion.
It should be noted that a Global Forest Convention is an evolving framework
which is elaborated through the adoption of binding decisions and protocols, a
process which has proved highly successful in other agreements such as the
Vienna Convention which has been strengthened in its objective for curbing ozone
depletion by the addition of the Montreal Protocol.
Moreover, in 1995, it has been estimated that 29 countries of the would have
more than 50% of their land area under forests and that 85% of the world’s
forest cover is located in only 25 countries, while nearly 100 nations have low
or scarce forest cover. In fact, 7 nations, the USA, Brazil, the Russian
Federation, Canada, China, Indonesia and Zaire account for more than 60% of the
world’s forests, although only two of these countries, namely Brazil and
China, have more than 50% of their land area under forests. So, in reality a
meaningful and effective Gobal Forest Convention needs only to involve these 7
countries and the remaining 27 countries having more than 50% of their land
areas under forest cover.
9.0 Criteria And Indicators
Overview
Concern has also been expressed by the world community on the unsustainable
management of the tropical forest as a result of over-harvesting the resource
which will lead to forest degradation and the unsustainable use of the resource.
Hence, as called for in Principle 8(d) of the Forest Principles, there is a need
to establish internationally agreed norms, criteria and indicators for the
sustainable management, utilization and development for all types of forests in
the world, and for each of the functional uses of the respective forest types.
In this regard, the importance of criteria and indicators has been widely
recognized as tools for nations to identify the main elements of sustainable
forest management and for measuring and assessing progress towards it; and
internationally, as a valuable tool for reporting progress in the context of the
ITTO Year 2000 Objective and the FAO’s Forest Resource Assessment for the Year
2000 (FRA-2000), as well as, for tracking further progress into the next
millennium.
The main purpose of indicators is to indicate change, both in the forest
itself (outcome indicators) or in the environmental and forest management
systems used (process indicators). If the values of any indicator are placed in
a time sequence, they provide information on the direction of change, either
towards or away from sustainable forest management. It should be noted that no
single criterion or indicator alone constitutes a measure of sustainability.
Rather the set of criteria and indicators should be considered as an integral
part to assess sustainable forest management. It is also important to note that
criteria and indicators by themselves cannot establish whether management is or
is not sustainable. To do this, they must be supplemented by standards of
performance and management prescriptions which must be determined by
the countries themselves and may often, within countries, be specific to
particular forest types.
However, the information generated through the use of criteria and indicators
in assessing the state of the forest will help policy and decision-makers to
communicate the status of sustainable forest management more effectively to the
public. It will also assist in developing policies and strategies for
sustainable forest management, in focusing research efforts where knowledge is
still lacking and deficient, and in identifying those areas which are in special
need of international assistance and co-operation. In this way, the forest
indicators are in theory somewhat similar to economic indicators, such as
inflation, employment or interest rates, which are used by many countries to ‘indicate’
the overall health of national economies and stimulate appropriate policy
adjustments to achieve economic objectives.
In addition, if the indicators are operationalized and if prescriptions and
standards are set, a sound basis would have been created for assessing
sustainable forest management at the operational level, which may provide a link
to voluntary certification.
Currently, significant progress has been made in the conceptualization of
ideas and in the identification of criteria and indicators for sustainable
forest management in many ecological zones of the world. These achievements
include the following:-
- the ITTO ‘Criteria for the Measurement of Sustainable Tropical Forest
Management’ which has formulated 5 criteria and 27 indicators at the
national level and 6 criteria and 23 indicators at the forest management
unit level for sustainable forest management;
- the ‘Helsinki Process’ or officially known as ‘The European Process
on Criteria and Indicators for Sustainable Forest Management’ covering 38
countries in Europe which has agreed upon 6 criteria, 27 quantitative
indicators and a number of descriptive indicators for sustainable forest
management;
- the "Montreal Process’ for boreal and temperate forests outside
Europe involving 12 countries which has developed 7 non-legally binding
criteria and 67 indicators at the national level for sustainable forest
management;
- the ‘Tarapoto Proposal of Criteria and Indicators for Sustainability of
the Amazon Forest’ for the 8 countries adhering to the Amazon Co-operation
Treaty which has identified 7 criteria and 47 indicators at the national
level, an additional 4 criteria and 22 indicators at the forest management
unit level and one criterion and 7 indicators dealing with global concern;
- the UNEP/FAO initiative for the Dry-Zone Africa covering 27 countries
which has developed 7 criteria and 47 indicators for sustainable forest
management;
- the FAO/UNEP initiative covering 30 countries in the Near East Forestry
Commission which has formulated 7 criteria and 65 indicators for sustainable
forest management; and
- the FAO/CCAD initiative for the 7 countries in the Central American
Commission for Environment and Development (CCAD) which has developed 4
criteria and 40 indicators at the regional Central American level, and 8
criteria and 52 indicators at the national level for sustainable forest
management.
In order to minimized conflicts among many actors with an interest in the
forestry sector, efforts should be taken to develop, adopt, and apply an
acceptable common working definition on "sustainable forest
management", as well as, the development and application of increasingly
complex criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management, that is,
moving from the past focus on biological yields and financial returns to the
present interests in indicators of biological diversity, forest health and
quality, and the total economic value of the forest.
Moreover, the development of criteria and indicators for sustainable forest
management should take into account regional and sub-regional characteristics of
forests and the diversity of economic, social and cultural environments.
Malaysian Criteria and Indicators
Malaysia as a producer country of ITTO is fully committed to achieve
sustainable forest management in the overall context of sustainable development.
In this regard, Malaysia has taken action to elaborate and operationalize the ITTO
Guidelines for the Sustainable Management of Natural Tropical Forests and
its Criteria for the Measurement of Sustainable Tropical Forest Management
in managing its natural forest and to ensure it is sustainably managed by the
year 2000. Implicit to this commitment is the acceptance of the ITTO definition
on sustainable forest management which is defined as a process of managing
permanent forest land to achieve one or more clearly specified objectives of
management with regard to the production of a continuous flow of desired forest
products and services without undue reduction of its inherent values and future
productivity, and without undue undesirable effects on the physical and social
environment.
In this connection, a National Committee on Sustainable Forest Management
in Malaysia comprising representatives from the Ministry of Primary
Industries, Malaysia; the Forestry Departments of Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and
Sarawak; the Forest Research Institute, Malaysia; the Malaysian Timber Industry
Board; the Malaysian Timber Council and the Faculty of Forestry, Putra
University of Malaysia was established in February 1994 at the Ministry to
ensure that the elaborated ITTO's Criteria for the Measurement of Sustainable
Tropical Forest Management in the Malaysian context are fully implemented.
To further support the Committee's work, the ten State Forestry Departments in
Peninsular Malaysia had also formed a Working Party on Sustainable Natural
Forest Management, Peninsular Malaysia at the Forestry Department
Headquarters, Peninsular Malaysia also in February, 1994.
After a series of meetings the Committee had formulated a total of 92
activities to operationalize the ITTO's 5 criteria and 27 indicators on
sustainable forest management at the national level as appears in Appendix
1. In the process, the Committee had added two additional indicators,
while omitting two of the proposed ITTO's indicators. The two additional
indicators were the indicator on Plantation Establishment of Non-wood Forest
Produce and Annual Planting Targets under the ITTO's criterion on the
Forest Resource Base and the indicator on Expenditure Budgets for Forest
Administration under the ITTO's criterion on Socio-Economic Effects.
The reason for omitting the ITTO's indicator on Availability of Environmental
Assessment Procedures under the criterion Socio-Economic Effects was
that this indicator was also included under the criterion on the Level of
Environmental Control which the Committee deemed to be more appropriate,
while the omission of the indicator on the Relationship of National Policy to
ITTO Guidelines under the criterion on Institutional Frameworks was
that the National Forestry Policy of Malaysia had adequately met the objectives
of the ITTO guidelines in terms of sustainable forest management.
Currently, each individual state in Malaysia is defined as the forest
management unit in view of the following legal and administrative requirements
:-
- under Article 74 (2) of the Malaysian Constitution, forestry comes under
the jurisdiction of the respective State Governments. As such, each state is
empowered to enact laws on forestry and to formulate forestry policy
independently. The executive authority of the Federal Government only
extends to the provision of advice and technical assistance to the states,
training, the conduct of research and in the maintenance of experimental and
demonstration stations;
- the implementation of Criteria, Indicators and Activities, as well as,
Management Specifications are monitored and evaluated at the state level by
the Federal agencies and bodies, such as the National Forestry Council;
- all the decisions made with regard to the implementation of forest
management, conservation and development activities in the states are
carried out at the state level by the respective State Authorities;
- the allocation of Annual Allowable Cuts (AACs) for the production forests
of the Permanent Forest Estate (PEF) by the National Forestry Council is
determined on a state basis; and
- under section 4 of the National Forestry Act, 1984 (Amended 1993), each
Director of the State Forestry Department is responsible to the State
Authority for the preparation and implementation of State forest management
plan, reforestation plan and programmes relating to amenity forests.
In this regard, the National Committee on Sustainable Forest Management in
Malaysia had identified a total of 84 activities to be implemented at the
forest management unit level under the 6 criteria of ITTO and its 23 indicators.
In its development, the Committee had added 7 additional indicators from those
identified at the national level to this level which are as follows:-
- the length of cutting cycle;
- areas of Protection Forests and Production Forests within the PFE;
- establishment of forest plantations for wood production,
- establishment of forest plantations for non-wood production;
- availability of environmental assessment procedures;
- expenditure budgets for forest management; and
- expenditure budgets for forest administration.
Of the 84 activities that are being implemented on a state basis, a total of
70 activities or 83% are identical to those identified at the national level as
shown in Appendix 2. This level of management will be further
refined once the current silvicultural management systems are further developed
for application at a lower management level, perhaps at the forest district
level, forest reserve level or even at the compartment level. In this
connection, the Deutche Gesellschaft fur Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) project
on Sustainable Forest Management and Conservation in Peninsular Malaysia
which is involved in the refinement of the current forest management systems,
the improvement of silvicultural practices and the development of a
cost-effective forest planning system for application at the operational level
would greatly enhance this process.
In Peninsular Malaysia, against each of the activities identified at the
national and forest management unit levels, the respective Forestry Departments
had also formulated management specifications or standards of performance
(benchmarks) for its effective monitoring and evaluation. Currently, a total of
201 and 191 management specifications have been formulated at the national and
forest management unit levels respectively as shown in Appendices 1 and 2.
Of the 191 management specifications formulated at the forest management unit
level, a total of 161 or 84% of these specifications are identical to those
formulated at the national level. In this context, management specifications had
also being formulated by the Forestry Department of Sarawak while those for
Sabah are expected to be ready soon.
Furthermore, in formulating the 92 and 84 activities for implementation at
the national and forest management unit levels respectively, the National
Committee on Sustainable Forest Management in Malaysia had reviewed the Principles
and Criteria for Forest Management of the Forest Stewardship Council
and those of the Tropenwald Initiative, and had also taken into account
the Principles and Recommendations as enshrined in the ITTO Guidelines on the
Conservation of Biological Diversity in Tropical Production Forests.
Targets for the achievement of the 92 and 84 activities at the national and
forest management unit levels respectively had also been set by the respective
State Forestry Departments in Malaysia, as well as, the cost that would be
incurred to fully implement them by the year 2000 in accordance with Malaysia's
commitment to the ITTO's Year 2000 Objective. In this regard, preliminary
estimates had indicated that a sum of RM2,884.7 million would be required to
fully implement these activities by the year 2000, including the need for
research, and infrastructural and human resources development. In Peninsular
Malaysia alone, a sum of RM 1,654.5 million would be required, of which a total
of RM 1,316.3 (79.6%) has been earmarked by the Federal and State Governments
for this endeavor.
For the purpose of forest management certification which is undertaken at the
forest management unit level, Peninsular Malaysia had taken a sub-set of the
activities and management specifications formulated for sustainable forest
management at the forest management unit level on a state basis as shown in Appendix
3. It encompasses 71 activities under a total of 6 criteria and 28
indicators.
The rationale for this is that forest management certification only involves
the sustainability of the PFE and especially its production forests. Hence, the
activities that had been omitted from those formulated for measuring sustainable
forest management at the forest management unit level are as follows :-
- identify areas for forest plantation of wood and non-wood forest produce
outside the PFE;
- determine the optimum concession length;
- harvest and replant the forest plantation;
- project the level of wood production from conversion forests, plantation
forests and perennial agricultural tree crops (rubberwood);
- establish forest plantations outside the PFE for wood and non-wood
productions; and
- report on the contributions in terms of forest revenue to the State
Governments.
Based on this set of criteria, indicators, activities and management
specifications, an internal assessment on its implementation at the forest
management unit level was conducted in Peninsular Malaysia and it was revealed
that currently a total of 64 activities or 76% have been fully implemented while
9 activities or 11% are partially being implemented. These partially implemented
activities together with the balance of the 11 activities or 13% that are yet to
be implemented are envisaged to be fully implemented by the year 2000.
Furthermore, Malaysia and the Netherlands through its Foundation Keurhout had
also undertaken a Pilot Study to identify the requirements for timber
certification and in tracking timber/timber products, namely, sawn timber,
plywood and mouldings, through the chain of custody, as well as, quantify the
cost involved. The Study, among others, conducted an assessment on current
forest management practices in the states of Pahang, Selangor and Terengganu
based on a phased approach in accordance with the Malaysian criteria,
indicators, activities and management specifications for forest management
certification which were elaborated from the ITTO guidelines and agreed to by
experts and scientists from the Netherlands. A third party, SGS (Societe
Generale de Surveillance) Malaysia, Sdn. Bhd. was appointed to undertake the
Study which was completed at the end of 1996. The results of the Study had shown
that, on average, the states of Pahang, Selangor dan Terengganu had achieved
70.1%, 66.5% and 71.5% respectively in implementing the Malaysian criteria,
indicators, activities and management specifications for sustainable forest
management.
10.0 Future Actions
As the long-term prospect of abundant supply of forest is limited and
technological innovations are inadequate, discrete and unpredictable, one has to
tailor development efforts judiciously so as not to sacrifice development
itself. In this regard, the future patterns of forest resources management and
use in Malaysia would have to be restructured by adopting strategies of
sustainable management which are innovative and imaginative through enhanced
human resources development, and treating environment as an integral part of
management in order to ensure maximum economic and social benefits are derived
from managing these resources.
Moreover, recognizing that the development of the forest resources itself is
a continuous process which involves intentional and planned changes to the
environment through various anthropogenic activities, it must therefore be
accompanied by conscious efforts in guiding these environmental changes so that
the sustenance of economic growth will serve the purpose of providing a better
standard and quality of life itself. Hence, the change must be undertaken
through proper long-term management of the forest resources by maintaining an
optimum equilibrium between resource utilization and the need to protect the
environment as environmental stability is a prerequisite for the sustainable
production of forest goods and services.
There is also an urgent need to develop a set of internationally agreed
criteria and indicators for measuring sustainable forest management of all types
of forests, be it temperate, boreal or tropical or at the very least a set of
internationally agreed indicators for areas in similar ecological zones such as
those developed by ITTO, and to promote and ensure their mutual recognition
while acknowledging the differences among countries. Although certain criteria
and indicators are only applicable at the national level, for example, those
related to the balance between different uses of forest lands or to national
policies, criteria and indicators applied at the national level should be those
derived from the sub-national or forest management unit level and hence, they
should not be mutually exclusive from one another.
The criteria and indicators developed should be reviewed and refined
periodically to reflect new concepts of sustained forest management. These will
be based on evolving knowledge about the functioning of forest ecosystems,
anthropogenic interventions on the forests whether planned or unplanned and the
changing needs of society for forest goods and services. Moreover, the
capability to measure indicators will increase and scientific knowledge will
improve about the nature of ‘best’ indicators to measure sustainability of
the forest resources.
11.0 Conclusions
Sustainable forest management involves the economic production of wood, as
well as, in meeting local needs for fuelwood, poles, food, fodder and others. It
includes the setting aside areas to be managed as plant and wildlife reserves or
for recreational and eco-tourism or environmental purposes. It also includes the
conversion of forest to agriculture and other permanent non-forestry uses which
should be carried out in a properly planned and controlled manner.
Besides, sustainable forest management also covers the regeneration of
wastelands and degraded forests, the integration of tree in farming the
landscape and the promotion of agro-forestry.
Hence, the issue of forestry must be related to the entire gamut of
environment problems and should not be singled out to the exclusion of other
environmental issues, particularly on the need to control and reduce greenhouse
gas emissions among developed countries. In fact, the developed countries
continue to be the main causes of environmental degradation, given their
unsustainable patterns of lifestyles and from their past neglect in sustainably
managing their natural environment and resources, including air, water and land.
There is no acceptable rational why tropical countries should bear the brunt
of protecting the world’s environment as in many developing countries, the
clearing of forest is, in practical terms, unavoidable as they are constrained
by poverty, demographic pressure, external indebtedness and the phenomenon of
net transfer of resources to developed countries.
In this context, the key principles in ensuring sustainable forest management
are that ecological constraints must be considered early in any forest land
development; that the allocation of forests to other uses should be considered
only after thorough economic, social and ecological evaluation; that forest
should only be converted to other permanent non-forestry uses if it could be
demonstrated that this would produce sustainable benefits in a more desirable
form than the forest itself could produce; that wherever possible, forest areas
which are already degraded should be selected for non-forestry uses rather than
clearing yet more forest areas; and that special efforts be taken to manage
forest areas that are critical for the maintenance of watersheds and in the
conservation of biological diversity. There is a long way to go before such
comprehensive forest management is likely to be fully practiced in Malaysia.
12.0 References
|
1. |
Anon, (1989) |
Climate Change: Meeting the Challenge. Commonwealth Group Of Experts,
Commonwealth Secretariat, United Kingdom. |
|
2. |
Anon, (1991) |
Biological Diversity and Developing Countries: Issues and Options.
Overseas Development Administration (ODA), United Kingdom. |
|
3. |
FAO, (1997) |
State of World’s Forests 1997. Food and Agriculture Organization of
the United Nations, Rome, Italy. |
|
4. |
IUCN et al, (1990) |
Conserving the World’s Biodiversity. IUCN/WRI/CI/WWF - US/World Bank. |
|
5. |
Wilson, E.O, (1988) |
Biodiversity. National Academy Press. |
|
6. |
WMO, (1990) |
The Atmosphere of the Living Planet Earth. WMO - No. 735, Secretariat
of the World Meteorological Organization, Geneva, Switzerland. |
|
7. |
WRI, (1989) |
Keeping options alive: the scientific basis for conserving biodiversity. |
+ Paper presented at the
Malaysian Timber Council (MTC), Kuala Lumpur, 18 April, 1998.
* Assistant Director-General of Forestry (Macro & Micro
Planning), Forestry Department Headquarters, Peninsular Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur.
| |
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