Use of certified wood (FSC/PEFC)
Introduction
Sustainable forest management, sustainable forest management or sustainable forest management (SFM) is the management of forests in accordance with the principles of sustainable development. The SFM must maintain a balance between the three main pillars: ecological, economic and sociocultural. Achieving SFM provides integrated benefits for all, ranging from safeguarding livelihoods to protecting biodiversity and ecosystems, reducing rural poverty and mitigating some of the effects[1] of climate change. With global warming, it is necessary to sustainably manage forests, reducing their fuel load, to avoid catastrophic fires.[2].
The "Forest Principles" adopted at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 established what is internationally considered sustainable forest management (SFM). Several sets of "Sustainable Forest Management Criteria and Indicators" have since been developed to assess the achievement of SFM at global, continental, national and local levels. All were attempts to develop standards and provide an independent assessment of the extent to which the broader objectives of SFM are being achieved in practice. In 2007, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the non-binding Instrument on All Types of Forests. This instrument was the first of its kind, and reflected the strong international commitment to promote SFM through a new approach that brings together all actors.
Definition
The Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe (MCPFE, also called the Helsinki Process and, since 2009, FOREST EUROPE) established the following definition[3] of sustainable forest management, which has since been adopted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO):.
In simpler terms, the concept can be described as achieving a balance between society's increasing demands for forest products and preserving the health and diversity of forests. This balance is critical for the survival of forests and the prosperity of the populations that depend on them.
The concept is not new. On the Forest Management page it can be seen that forest management has always taken into account that it must be maintained indefinitely. What is new is the context: in a world threatened by the accumulation of carbon dioxide (CO) in the atmosphere, developed countries are trying to prevent developing nations from cutting down their immense extensions of jungle, which would release an amount of CO that would cause unpredictable changes. These forests are cut down, not so much to use wood, which is also true, but to cultivate the land and extract products that are more valued in the market, such as soybeans or palm oil.