© Zavod za certifikacijo gozdov PEFC SLO 01:2012

SLOVENIAN FOREST CERTIFICATION SCHEME

PEFC SLO 01:2012

Requirements for PEFC scheme users

General Presentation of SlovenianForest

Certification Scheme

Date: Adopted on 14.9. 2012 / National PEFC Governing Body
Institute for Forest Certification
Celovška cesta 135
1000 Ljubljana
Tel: + 386 1 51 36 702
E- mail: , internet:

PEFC ST 2002/2010 1/16

© Zavod za certifikacijo gozdov PEFC SLO 01:2012

© Zavod za certifikacijo gozdov (Institute for Forest Certification)

The document is produced on the basis of international standards of the PEFC Council.

No part of the document may be changed or amended, reproduced or copied in any form or by any means for commercial purposes without the permission of the Institute for Forest Certification.

The document is freely available on the web site or at the headquarters of the Institute for Forest Certification.

Document title: General Presentation of Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme

Document title code: PEFC SLO 01:2012

Endorsed by the Council of the Institute for Forest Certification: 14.9.2012

Date of entry into force:

1/16

© Zavod za certifikacijo gozdov PEFC SLO 01:2012

Contents

Page

1. Introduction

2. Contents

3. Mandatory Documents…………………………………………………………………………………… 2

4. Objectives of Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme

6. Revision of the Slovenian forest Certification Scheme

7. Methods for Sustainable Forest Management Certification under the Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme

8. Participants in forest certification under the Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme and/or Chain of Custody of Forest Based Products Certification

8.1 Institute for Forest Certification

8.2. Accreditation Body, Certification Body and Auditors

8.3. Applicant for certificate………………………………………………………………………………

9.Certification of Chain of Custody of Forest Based Products

10. PEFC logo usage

11. Appeals, complains and dispute procedures

11.1. Dispute settlement committee

11.2. Procedures for dispute settlement committee

12. Definition of key terms………………………………………………………………………………

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© Zavod za certifikacijo gozdov PEFC SLO 01:2012

1. Introduction

This document describes the Slovenian ForestCertification Scheme for certification of sustainable forest management and it is also used for the implementation of the certification of chain of custody of forest based products.

For many decades the Slovenian forests have been managed according to the three basic principles of close-to-nature management, sustainability and multipurposefulness, and this approach is reflected in the condition of the Slovenian forests. Owing to dispersion of forest holdings and a large number of forest owners at the time of drawing up the Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme, the only suitable certification system for ensuring the cost efficiency and protecting the equality of small forest owners is the PEFC certification system. The said system enables regional, group and individual certifications. The main guidelines of the Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme are the principles of non-discrimination, voluntary participation and cost-efficiency and credibility of the system.

The Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme for sustainable forest management is based on the requirements stated in the Technical Documents of the PEFC Council. The scheme takes into account the Slovenian legislation governing forest management and nature protection, the national forest management strategy, the state of forestry and its development in the past, the ownership structure, the forest management planning system, the methodology of forestry data collection and processing and other documents applicable in Slovenia.

Criteria for sustainable forest management have been formulated in an independent procedure within the framework of the Forum for drawing up criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management and for establishing criteria for implementation of chain of custody (in 2006) as well as within the working group for the scheme revision in 2012.

2. Contents

The Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme includes the following documents:

  1. General Presentation of Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme - PEFC SLO 01:2012
  1. Requirements for Regional, Group and Individual Certification - PEFC SLO 02:2012
  1. Criteria and Indicators for Sustainable Forest Management at Regional level - PEFC SLO 03:2012
  1. Criteria and Indicators for Sustainable Forest Management at Group and Individual Level -PEFC SLO 04:2012
  1. Certification and Accreditation Procedures for Certification Bodies Carrying Out Certification PEFC SLO 05:2012
  1. Requirements for Auditors -PEFC SLO 06:2012
  1. Chain of Custody of forest based Products- Requirements -PEFC ST2002:2010
  1. PEFC Logo Usage Rules - Requirements

PEFC ST 2001:2008, Version No. 2, 2010-11-26

Other related documents:

  • Statute of Institute for Forest Certification
  • Rules of Procedures for Working Group for Revision of Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme
  • PEFC Council Minimum Requirements Checklist

3. Mandatory Documents

The following documents are required as mandatory by the PEFC Council and the Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme which have been taken into account in the revision of the scheme:

  • Forest Act(Zakon o gozdovih /ZG/)
  • Resolution on National Forest Programme (Resolucija o nacionalnem gozdnem programu /ReNGP/)
  • FAO, FAO Global Forest Resources Assessment 2005, FAO Forestry Paper 147
  • ILO No. 87, Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention, 1948
  • ILO No. 29, Forced Labour Convention, 1930
  • ILO No. 98, Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949
  • ILO No. 100, Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951
  • ILO No. 105, Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957
  • ILO No. 111, Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958
  • ILO No. 138, Minimum Age Convention, 1973 ILO No. 169, Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989
  • ILO No. 182, Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 United Nations, United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, 2007 Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants, 1998.

4. Objectives of Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme

The certification objectives are as follows:

  • monitoring and continual improvement of sustainable forest management;
  • promotion of consumption of wood as renewable raw material;
  • establishment of a market instrument for sales of wood and wood products made of sustainably produced raw material;
  • ensuring customers that the wood labelledwith the PEFC logo was acquired from the area where the principles of sustainable forest management apply.

5 . Legislation, Resolutions and Declarations

5.1. National Forest Programme

Forest management guidelines are stated in the Resolution on National Forest Programme (ReNGP, OG RS, No.111/2007). By way of the Vienna Resolution 1 of the Fourth Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe taking place in Vienna in 2003, the National Forest Programme is defined as a wide decision-making process of all interested partners from the field of forestry policies and of strategic documents dealing with forests.

The fundamental legal bases for the production of the National Forest Programme are the Forest Act and Wild Game and Hunting Act.

The Forest Act stipulates for the National Forest Programme to determine the national sustainable forest management policy, guidelines for the preservation and development of forests in the Republic of Slovenia and conditions for their exploitation and multi-purpose use.

The Wild Game and Hunting Act stipulates that the Wild Game Management Programme is an integral part of the Forest Development Programme (National Forest Programme) which determines the strategy for directing the development of wild game populations and taking action in their living environment and that the mentioned programme is a permanent basis for the planning of hunting management areas.

The following strategic documents are included within the National Forest Programme:

(a) EU

- The Sixth Environment Action Programme of the European Community (Decision No 1600/2002/ECof the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 July 2002),

- The Thematic Strategy on the Sustainable Use of Natural Resources (2006/2210(INI)).

National:

- The National Environment Protection Action Programme (Resolution on National Environment Protection Programme 2005-2012, OG RS, No. 2/06),

- The Spatial Planning Strategy of Slovenia (Ordinance on Spatial Planning Strategy of Slovenia, OG RS, No. 76/04),

- The National Cultural Programme (Resolution on National Cultural Programme, OG RS, No. 28/04),

- The Biodiversity Conservation Strategy of Slovenia (Decision of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia No. 354-16/2001-1, 20 December 2001),

- The Operational Programme for the Attainment of the National Emissions Ceilings concerning air pollutants (Decision of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia, No. 35405-4/2006/5, 4 January 2007),

- The Operational Programme for Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions by 2012 (Decision of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia, No. 35405-3/2006, 20 December 2006).

(b) International documents

The most important international documents taken into consideration during the production of the National Forest Programme are:

- The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED, Rio de Janeiro, June 1992),

- The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (Act Ratifying the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, OG RS, No. 59/95),

- the Convention on Biological Diversity (Act Ratifying the Convention on Biological Diversity, OG RS, No. 30/96),

- Resolutions of the Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe (MCPFE) - Strasbourg 1990, Helsinki 1993, Lisbon 1998, Vienna 2003,

- Kyoto Protocol (Act Ratifying the Kyoto protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, OG RS, No. 60/02),

- the Forestry Strategy for the European Union (OG C 56, 26 February 1999),

- the EU Forest Action Plan (COM(2006) 302 final.),

- EU legislation:

- the Directive on the conservation of wild birds (OG L 103, 25 April 1979),

- the Directive on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora (OG L 206, 22 July 1992),

- the Council Regulation (EC) no 1698/05 on support for rural development by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD).

5.2. Forest Act

The protection, silviculture, exploitation and use of forests and the disposal of forests in Slovenia is defined by the Forest Act (ZG, Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia, No. 30/1993, OG RS, No.13/1998Constitutional Court Decision: U-I-53/95,24/1999Constitutional Court Resolution: U-I-51/95,56/1999-ZON (31/2000corr.),67/2002,110/2002-ZGO-1,112/2006Constitutional Court Decision: U-I-40/06-10,115/2006,110/2007,61/2010Constitutional Court Decision: U-I-77/08-14,106/2010), being a fundamental act for the provision of sustainable, close-to-nature and multi-purpose management in accordance with the principles of protection of the environment and natural values, long-term and optimal working of forests as ecosystems and enabling their functions.

The Resolution on National Forest Programme and the Forest Act must be taken into account in order to obtain a certificate.The said documents are mandatory in of Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme.

6. Revision of the Slovenian forest Certification Scheme

In accordance with the requirements by the PEFC and in accordance with the Statute of the Institute for Forest Certification, a revision of criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management and procedures regarding the chain of custody of forest based products was carried out following the expiry of five years from the day of the approval of the certification scheme. The revision is to be carried out in accordance with the Statute of the Institute for Forest Certification, Chapters 2.4 and 2.5 and according to the PEFC standard 1001:2010 as of 26 November 2010 and thestandards: ISO/IEC: Guide 59:1994 and ISO/IEC Guide 2: 1996 and later amendments adopted by the PEFC Council.

The method of work of the working group and the Rules of Procedures must comply with PEFC international rules and must be adopted by the working group.

Procedure for the modification of the national scheme

The procedures are carried out by the Institute for Forest Certification, being the owner of the Slovenian Scheme and the PEFC National Governing Body (hereinafter referred to as “theIFC”).

The procedure includes:

  1. Information to stakeholders by individual areas of interest on the modification of the Slovenian Scheme and on the extent of work in terms of the content and time.
  1. Determining key stakeholders and their active inclusion into the scheme revision process.
  1. Public notice by the IFC informing on the commencement of the Scheme Modification Process which includes an invitation on the website and in suitable media. The invitation to the neglected and key stakeholders must be submitted in a manner for them to be informed on the issue.

The publication includes:

-Information on objectives, content of work and steps important for the modification of the scheme;

-Time line of the progress of scheme modification and its approval;

-Information of opportunities for the participation of stakeholders;

-Invitation to stakeholders to appoint their representative into the working group for the scheme modification;

-A notification on the place where the document: Requirements for Setting the PEFC 1001:2010 Standard, is publicly accessible.

  1. The IFC will adapt the scheme modification process to comments and supplements received during the public consultation and appoint a working body for the modification of the Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme (hereinafter referred to as “the WG”) considering the proposals or nominations received. The adoption or rejection of the nomination must be based by taking into consideration a balanced composition of the working body with regard to the interests of stakeholders.
  1. The working body must operate following the principle of openness and transparency whereby:

-working versions of documents are accessible to all WG members;

-all members must have an opportunity to provide their opinions and contributions for the modification of the scheme and submit their comments on a draft document;

-comments and standpoints of members must be handled in an open and transparent manner and recorded.

  1. The IFC shall organise a public discussion of the scheme which must be organised so as to have:

-the scheme and the time line published in the appropriate media;

-the invitation to neglected and key stakeholders must be submitted in a manner for them to be informed on the topic;

-the draft scheme must be accessible to the public;

-the public discussion lasts for at least 60 days;

-all comments received are handled in an objective manner by the working group;

-a summery of comments and remarks, including answers, is publicly accessible, for example, on the internet.

  1. The IFC shall carry out a pilot test of the new scheme in a case when the latter greatly derogates from the current scheme. Results of the pilot test are dealt with by the working group.
  1. A decision on submitting the scheme to the IFC Council for its approval must be adopted on the basis of consensus.

The approval of the scheme may be made at the meeting, voted through telephone or e-mail of in a combination of the communication means mentioned before.

  1. In a case of a negative vote by a representative showing his/her disagreement, the following mechanisms shall be used for any of the fields:

-discussion and negotiation within the extent of the working group with the aim to reach a consensus;

-direct negotiations between shareholders where their standpoints are further substantiated with the aim to reach a consensus;

-the negotiation process.

  1. The documentation regarding the implementation of the process for setting up the scheme (minutes, etc.) must be publicly accessible.
  1. The IFC Council shall endorse the consolidated version of the Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme.
  1. A formally endorsed scheme and procedural documents must be published within a reasonable time and accessible to the public.

The scheme revision process shall be revisedafter five years will have elapsed, following the procedures described in items 1 to 12 which shall form an integral part of the Rules of Procedures of the working group.

A data planned for the application of the revised scheme to the international PEFC Council if defined during the revision, as well as a transition period during which the scheme is assessed by a foreign auditor. The transition period should not exceed one year except in a case when a longer period is requested by the implementation of modifications.

Working group shall have adopted guidelines and rules of procedures.

Note: The basis for the work of the working group in 2012 were the Guidelines for the work of the working group which were adopted on 10 January 2012 and the Rules of Procedures on the work of the working Group adopted on 4 April 2012.

7. Methods for Sustainable Forest Management Certification under the Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme

The basic guideline in defining of certification units stems from three principles: non-discrimination, cost efficiency and voluntary participation.

The Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme allows for three certification methods:

  1. regional,
  2. group and
  3. individual.

In view of the above methods of sustainable forest management certification the following may apply for a certificate:

  1. authorised regional representative,
  2. authorised group representative and
  3. forest owner, manager of forest owner’s holding or person authorised by a forest owner.

Forest owners participating in the regional or group forest certification has to sign a statement with which they undertake to enter the system and to adhere to the sustainable management principles in managing their forest. Only forests of those owners who signed this statement are classified as certified forests.

Procedures of a Dispute Settlement Committee are described in Chapter 11 of this document.

8. Participants in forest certification under the Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme and/or Chain of Custody of Forest Based Products Certification

Pursuant to the requirements of the Slovenian Forest Certification Scheme the following bodies or individuals participate in the scheme:

  1. Institute for Forest Certification;
  2. Accreditation body;
  3. Certification body;
  4. Applicant for certificate.

8.1.Institute for Forest Certification

The Institute for Forest Certification was registered before the Ljubljana District Court in December 2004. Founders of this Institute are: Chamber of Agriculture and Forestry of Slovenia (CAFS) and Commercial Association of Forestry. The Institute for Forest Certification is organised as a private, not-for-profit institute, in accordance with the Institutes Act (Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia, No. 12/91, OG RS, No.45I/1994,Constitutional Court Decision: U-I-104/92,8/1996,18/1998,Constitutional Court Decision: U-I-34/98,36/2000-ZPDZC,127/2006-ZJZP).

The Institute for Forest Certification is a National Governing Body representing the PEFC Council in Slovenia and functioning as a not-for-profit organisation whose main objective is to promote and improve sustainable forest management in Slovenia. The methodology and other tasks are laid down in the Statute, which is enclosed herewith, and other documents adopted by the Council of the Institute for Forest Certification. Institute for forest certification is responsible for the implementation of the Slovenian Forest Certification scheme in Slovenia.