Use of Criteria and Indicators for Forest Management

Presented by

Bhagya Karunathilaka

Forests are managed for maintaining a healthy forest compatible with the owner objectives to maximum utilisation of the land ensuring the continuous outcome. In 1992 the Earth summit, the United Nations Conference Environmental Development focused on the importance of Sustainable Forest Management as a key component of sustainable development under its Chapter 11: Forest Principles for Sustainable Development in Agenda 21

Sustainable Forest Management addresses forest degradation and deforestation while increasing direct benefits to people and the environment. Criteria and Indicators are powerful tools in promoting Sustainable Forest Management by defining, guiding, monitoring and assessing the progress towards Sustainable forest management in a given context. In 1990, International Tropical Timber Organization initiated these Criteria and indicators

A criterion is a standard that a thing is judged by and an indicator is any variable can be used to infer performance which indicates the change in a direction of a criterion. Indicators can be defined in Quantitative, Qualitative or Descriptive manner. Present global initiatives of Criteria and Indicators are ITTO, Pan-European Forest, Montreal, Tarapoto, Dry Zone Africa, Near East, ATO and Central American processes.

Roles of criteria and indicators can be identified in International and/or regional scale, National and sub-national level and in Forest management unit level such as Supporting international forest policy deliberations and negotiations on issues related to Sustainable Forest management; Providing a basis for collecting, categorizing, analyzing, reporting, and  representing information the state of forests and their management; Describing, monitoring and  reporting on the national forest trends and changes; Assessing progress towards Sustainable Forest Management and identify emerging threats and weaknesses; and A basis for developing forest certification systems, etc.

There are seven common themes of Criteria and Indicators as Enabling Conditions for Sustainable forest management; Forest Resource Security; Forest Ecosystem Health and Conditions; Flow of Forest Products; Biological Diversity; Soil and water and Economic, social and culture aspect.

In the Asian context, Bhutan Has formulated general principles to guide its forest management plans but has no yet developed detailed Criteria and Indicators. China, A member of both ITTO and the Montreal process, is actively developing national and sub-national-level Criteria and Indicators. In India, The Institute of Indian Forest Management lead in developing Criteria and Indicators and Launched the Bhopal-India process in 1998 Collaboration with other international organizations, such as ITTO and CIFOR. Mongolia uses “environmental reporting indicators”.

Sri Lanka has prepared Management Plans for each natural forests consistency with international Criteria and Indicator processes. By the Forestry Sector Master Plan 1995, the Main former objective of the Forest Management: Wood production was replaced by current management strategies tending towards sustainable forest management for multiple purposes while Incorporating input from local communities. The Forest Department monitors a traditional array of basic forestry indicators in Sri Lanka because proper criteria and indicators have not been prepared in the national level.

Principles, criteria and indicators used in forest management

Principles, criteria and indicators used in management of tropical wet evergreen forests

Abstract of a seminar presentation

Isurie Dharmasoma

Principles, criteria and indicators are used to define, implement and monitor the forest management. Primary framework for managing forests in a sustainable fashion is provided by principles. It provides the justification for criteria and indicators.

A set or situation which should be met to comply with forest management activities is described by criteria. Criterion itself cannot be measured and therefore indicators are used to measure criteria. Indicator is a quantitative, qualitative or descriptive attribute that indicates the direction of change when periodically monitored or measured. Therefore criteria and indicators are used to monitor progress towards sustainable forest management.

Ongoing international initiatives of criteria and indicators are Helsinki process, ITTO criteria, Lapartique process etc. Principles, criteria and indicators included in these initiatives are different to each other because they are applied to different ecological regions. ITTO (International Tropical Timber Organisation) criteria are used for management of tropical forests. They have introduced 7 criteria and 66 indicators which can be applied in tropical forest management. These criteria and indicators are used by certification bodies, government officials, forest managers, scientists etc.

Under ITTO criteria, criterion 1 is enabling conditions for sustainable forest management. Criterion 2 is forest resource security. Criterion 3 is forest eco system health and condition. Flow of forest produce, biological diversity, soil and water are criterion 4, 5 and 6. An economic, social and cultural aspect is criterion seven.66 indicators are comes under these 7 criteria.

Criteria and indicators are to be easy to apply. However there are limitations also. Therefore the correct application of criteria and indicators contribute to the sustainable forest management.