The business of Criteria and Indicators in Sustainable Forest Management

Abstract

While forest companies in British Columbia have been active in the development and implementation of Criteria and Indicators (C&I) in planning for sustainable forest management, in many cases they are not yet considered to be a core business function. A business case for C&I means going beyond the current paradigm of meeting legislative requirements and identifying C&I for sustainable forest management strictly within the context of certification. Without a comprehensive business case that articulates how C&I programs affect a company's position in the market place in terms of measurable benefits, costs and exposure to risk, activities essential to sustaining the broad range of forestry-related socio-economic and ecological values may not get the prioritization and resources needed. Quantifying costs and benefits will help define how forest companies will most effectively meet their sustainable forest management objectives and identify opportunities for partnerships with government, First Nations, stakeholders and other companies in the collective management of the forest resource. Although some companies have begun to develop approaches to the business case for C&I, more work is needed in integrating the objectives and activities of SFM planning into the basic day-to-day operations of a company as well as providing training to resource managers to communicate in the language of business. Government should adopt and encourage a C&I business case approach to forest resource management by developing strong links to legislative and land use planning requirements.

Institutional vacuums in Canadian forest policy: Can criteria and indicators and certification of sustainable forest management fill the void?

“…These companies enter into certification and C&I processes where they are bombarded with constant pressure from groups to continually widen their accounting stance to include economic and social concerns, even beyond the forestry sector, that encompass such indicators as local unemployment levels, spousal abuse and alcoholism. Within this context a key challenge lies in making a "business case" for incorporating C&I into the day to day activities of forestry firms (Jeakins 2006).…”