Assessment of the Need for Aboriginal Compliance with Sustainable Forest Management and Forest Product Certification Systems [National Aboriginal Forestry Association, NAFA]

This discussion paper will examine how Aboriginal communities may be affected by processes under development to certify sustainable forest management or sustainably produced forest products and the possible basis for Aboriginal communities complying with these processes. Background information will be provided on the events leading to certification, the current status of certification initiatives and options for Aboriginal communities to meet certification standards or use such systems to promote their interests. A number of the certification processes under development will be reviewed, including the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) Sustainable Forest Management (SFM) System, the Forest Stewardship Council's (FSC) Principles and Criteria for Natural Forest Management, the International Standards Organization (ISO) 14000 Environmental Management System series. Aboriginal communities may be affected by certification as: (1) participants in forest management planning in their traditional territories; (2) forest managers of Reserve lands for which they decide to apply for certification; or (3) forest companies or contractors who provide forest products (primarily timber at this point) to forest companies who are certified. Aboriginal involvement in certification will depend on local circumstances including the nature of communities' or Aboriginal businesses' relationships with the forest industry and the degree of autonomy in forest management.