
Certification benefits
At present certification is a market mechanism; exista cerere si oferta pentru lemnul certificat FSC si implicit un interes crescut in producerea si comercializarea produselor certificate. in principal, decizia de intrare in procesul de certificare este in general legata de obtinerea unor avantaje (spre exemplu: accesul producatorului respectiv pe piata lemnului certificat - respectiv Europa de Vest sau America de Nord). in plus cumparatorii de pe aceste piete sunt tot mai mult informati si educati referitor la rolul padurilor dar si rolul certificarii managementului forestier.
Producers of certified raw material and companies which produce certified products, apart from access to new markets, may obtain the following benefits:
- 1. improvement of management systems, including planning monitoring, assessment and report mechanisms;
- 2. management quality recognition in compliance with international standards
- 3. improvement of the company management process and of the business ethics
- 4. access to credits and investments
- 5. assurance of the existing market when this fact becomes more and more difficult
- 6. companies are able to satisfy the demand of products with controlled origin
- 7. improvement of productive processes
At the level of local communities the following benefits can be obtained:
- 1. Taking part in the forest management related decision making that might affect the wellbeing of the community
- 2. Guarantees on the access to some products such as fire wood, mushrooms and forest berries
- 3. Guarantees on the access to some services (entertainment)
- 4. . Increase of the occupation level by the creation of jobs at local level
- 5. Representation of the own interests against other stakeholder groups (government, industry, etc.)
- 6. improvement of the level of participation in the territorial management and of understanding of forest management and of the own role in the local context (Liviu A.mariei, Certificarea gospodaririi padurilor [Forest Management Certfication], 2007)
The Romanian Government supports the sustainable forest management. It also gives support to economic agents through Law no. 105/2006 on the Environment Fund, in which article 45 stipulates: "The economical operator who buys in order to process, standing tree and/or row timber resulted from harvest sourced in certified forests, shall not calculate or pay the contribution to the Environment Fund".
One more reason for certification is represented by the economical and financial aspect. Besides the access on new markets or maintenance on the existing markets, sometimes the economical agents may have the advantage to get higher prices for FSC labelled products. To which extend and which percentage can only be decided be the free market, which sets the price. Yet, this does not often happens, it only occurs where the demand is very high.
In the case of forestry employees, the interest in certification is particular. Workers and union trades can obtain the following benefits:
- 1. Improvement of the work conditions
- 2. Improvement of the worker individual training level
- 3. Collective negotiation right
- 4. Mitigation of production activity related risks
- 5. Observance, by forest owners or companies, of legislation and of the Health and Safety regulations
- 6. Promotion of the trade policies on workers' health and safety
The number of eco-certified product consumers in continuously increasing, as the buyers are more and more informed in this respect. The FSC certification scheme, through product labelling, offers a strategy for differentiation. As such products are more and more sold, the appreciation on the market will increase and the independent certification will be considered as the most credible modality to transmit a strong environment policy towards the market.
At the same time, buyers are sure that the procurement of products has no negative impact upon the forest ecosystem, or upon the communities living in the vicinity or depending on the forest.
Nongovernmental organisations may obtain the following benefits:
- 1. Participate in the decision making upon the forest management through an open and transparent instrument. Ecologists want forest managements based on quantifiable standards of best practices that can be independently verified and that consider the impact on biodiversity. The FSC certification is the only system to meet this condition and is worldwide recognised.
- 2. Increase of recognition at civil society level.