Coroner & Legal
FSC® Australia welcomes Forestry Tasmania to membership
Melbourne, 9th August, 2013: FSC Australia announced today that it had accepted a membership application from Forestry Tasmania.
FSC Australia Chief Executive Natalie Reynolds said Forestry Tasmania had applied to join the FSC Economic chamber.
“We are delighted that Forestry Tasmania has committed to support FSC’s mission to promote environmentally appropriate, socially beneficial and economically viable management of the world’s forests.”
“It is important to note that membership of FSC Australia does not in any way influence the audit assessment for FSC certification, and thus whether or not the products of Forestry Tasmania can be sold as FSC Certified products or not.”
“Membership of the organisation gives the member a voice, along with all the others in the chamber, in policy matters.”
“It was determined by the Membership Committee and endorsed by the full FSC Board that Forestry Tasmania demonstrated the requisite commitment to imbed FSC in its operations such that it met the very strict criteria governed by our Constitution and membership rules.
“These are available on our website: http://au.fsc.org/become-a-member.196.htm ”
“Under FSC rules Forestry Tasmania will be assessed by an accredited independent certification body against the FSC Principles and Criteria in exactly the same way as any other organisation seeking certification. If FSC Certification is not obtained, the membership can be revoked.”
Chairman Bob Annells said Forestry Tasmania wants to be recognised and respected by stakeholders, customers, end users and the community for best-practice management of Tasmania’s Permanent Timber Production Zone Land identified by the Tasmanian Forest Agreement.
“This requires the quality of our management and practices to be certified as conforming to national and international standards.”
“The need for dual international certification of both forest management and wood products also is driven by commercial requirements.”
“We will be making every effort to ensure we meet the high standards necessary to obtain FSC certification.”
FSC certification for Forestry Tasmania is a durability requirement under the Tasmanian Forests Agreement.
For those who wish to know more about FSC and engage in FSC processes throughout Tasmania, FSC Australia is holding 2 sessions in early September to assist stakeholders in fully understanding how to link their concerns with the auditable standards.
Information is available here: http://au.fsc.org/newsroom.257.89.htm