site.btaFSC Opens Representative Office in Bulgaria

The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) opened a representative office, World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Bulgaria said here on Monday. Its official partner will be the Sustainable Forests Association, which brings together non-governmental organizations, experts and businesses.

Beyond forest certification, FSC places special emphasis on disaster protection, including fires, floods and landslides, WWF Bulgaria said.

WWF Bulgaria initiated FSC certification in the country more than 20 years ago and, since 2014, has led the development of a national standard tailored to local forests and legislation. The organization also runs training for forest enterprises and promotes the FSC label among consumers, WWF Bulgaria said. “Certification is not only an additional guarantee for forest protection but also for employees and workers, as well as for the livelihoods of people living in forest areas, because it builds on Bulgarian legislation,” Forest Programme Manager at WWF Bulgaria Neli Doncheva said.

In addition to the annual fire-prevention and firefighting action plans required by law for State forest and game enterprises, FSC-certified entities must carry out disaster-risk assessments that consider possible negative consequences not only for infrastructure and forest resources but also for local communities. Forest enterprises must also assess whether their own activities, such as logging, might increase disaster risk, WWF Bulgaria said. The aim of the standard is to ensure that income from forestry operations does not come at the expense of nature protection, the rights of forestry workers or the livelihoods of local people, the organization added.

FSC operates in 89 countries on five continents, and more than 150 million hectares of forest worldwide are certified under its standard.