is a process where an authoritative body formally recognizes an auditing body as capable of carrying out the tasks necessary to certify a company’s operation against a particular standard. It is also commonly referred to as certifying the certifiers.
The (ATFS) is a third-party certification standard focusing on the management practices of private landowners in the United States. To qualify for ATFS certification the landowner must own less than 10,000 acres of contiguous forestland and not be affiliated with any forest products manufacturing facility.
is the accredited body that is qualified to inspect and verify that a company’s practices conform to the certification standards.
The (CSA) is an accredited Standards Development Organization that was established in 1919 and is a non-profit voluntary association with a core focus on the development of a range of standards and product certification. The CSA sustainable forest management program was developed for forest management operations in Canada.
is the process whereby an independent auditing body (third party) conducts an inspection and awards a certificate using independently developed standards and objectives.
See auditor.
is the process of tracking and recording the possession and transfer of wood and fiber from a certified forest through the different stages of production—primary manufacturer, secondary manufacturer, wholesaler, and retailer—and to the end user.
is where a company makes a statement about its own forest management practices based on its own standards and objectives.
The (FSC) is an international non-profit organization that offers forest certification internationally.
refers to the structure for overseeing and maintaining a certification standard. The governance structure of forest certification systems is generally made up of a diverse list of interested stakeholders.
The (ISO) is a network of the national standards institutes of 146 countries. ISO establishes generic standards for applicable for use across all industry sectors.
is a process whereby an entity states that multiple certification systems meet its definition for sustainable forest management. The driving force behind mutual recognition is the existence of multiple certification systems in the market and confusion over whether or not they guarantee a certain level of sustainable forest management.
The is an international working group that was established to identify and define criteria and indicators for the sustainable management of temperate and boreal forests. Click here for more information.
A is one that has developed with little to no human management of the forest stand.
A is a landowner with less than 10,000 contiguous acres of forestland and is not affiliated with a forest products manufacturing facility. Note that this definition applies to the United States and may vary in other parts of the world.
measure on-the-ground performance against pre-defined standards.
A is a forested area managed principally for wood production commonly consisting of a single species of the same age.
The (PEFC) is an umbrella organization designed for the mutual recognition of forest certification systems throughout the world.
A is a mark affixed to the product providing information such as the content of certified raw material in the product. The certification systems usually have labels distinguishing products that use 100 percent certified content and those with a certain percentage of content.
is where an affiliated body, such as a trade association, certifies its members using collectively developed standards and objectives.
is defined as a process of developing, maintaining and enhancing the standards by which the performance of an applicant for certification can be assessed.
The is a forest certification program designed to document sustainable forest management on industrial lands in Canada and the United States.
, such as those established under the International Standards Organization (ISO), inspect and certify a company's management systems, which allow a company to monitor its environmental management and impact.
refers to an auditable system that assesses the overall characteristics of the raw wood and fiber from the forest to the end user.
