Project/activity information

This project will develop a harmonized set of Criteria and Indicators for the sustainable management of Brazilian tropical forests, taking into consideration the ITTO C&I and also the Tarapoto regional initiative. The project will be implemented by the Brazilian Association of Mechanically Processed Timber (ABIMCI), in co-operation with several other national organizations including the National Forum of Forest Organizations, Brazilian Society for Silviculture (SBS), the Brazilian Institute for Metrology, Standardization and Industrial Quality (INMETRO, a member of the International Accreditation Forum or IAF) and the Brazilian Ministry for the Environment (MMA). All these organizations are already engaged in the development of a set of C&I for plantation forests, rules for the chain of custody certification and auditing guidelines. The project will promote a broad consultation process in order to ensure that all stakeholders’ positions and existing technical expertise are taken into consideration. The project will also develop a Manual for the application of the Brazilian C&I for sustainable management of natural forests. The development of this Manual will consider the harmonized C&I, the ITTO Reporting Formats on C&I, and lessons learned in other projects (particularly in the on-going ITTO Project for Dissemination and Training on ITTO Guidelines and C&I (PD 30/95 Rev.1 (F)). The Manual will be field-tested in three locations, and the results will be discussed in a national workshop. Lessons learned from the field tests and through inputs from the workshop participants will be used to produce a final version of the Manual. The Manual will be printed and widely disseminated. Four training courses on the application of the Manual will be implemented in the Amazon region. At least 100 persons will be trained on the application of the Manual for assessing the sustainability of Brazilian forests, and at least 90 persons will be trained on auditing management practices. The training program will provide the timber industry with the necessary expertise to assess its forest management sustainability. Its outputs will be important for government officials and will serve as an initial basis for the preparation of auditors for the Brazilian Certification System (SBC).