Topic 1.3: Is increased consumption of wood sustainable?

|ECONOMIC COMMISSION FOR EUROPE |FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION |
|Timber Committee |European Forestry Commission |
|[pic] |[pic] |
Seminar Proceedings Advanced unedited version Strategies for the sound use of wood Poiana Brasov, Romania 24-27 March 2003 Note The designations employed and the presentation of material in this
publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the
part of the secretariat of the United Nations concerning the legal status
of any country, territory, city or area, or of its authorities, or
concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries.
Table of Content Foreword 5 Programme of the Seminar 7 Report of the Seminar 15 List of participants 31 Introduction Session: The place of sound use of wood and other forest
products in strategies for sustainable development 43
Linking sustainable forest management to timber sourcing decisions and
policies 44
Forest products utilization and sustainable development 52
Sustainability through competitiveness 68
What the international dialogue on forests has changed in the role of
production in promoting sustainable forest management (SFM) 69
From good forest management to the sound use of wood: an NGO view 80 Roundtable discussion of stakeholders 103
Confédération Européenne des Propriétaires Forestiers 104 Session I: What is sound use of wood? 105
Topic 1.1: Life Cycle Analysis 106
Comparison of wood products and major substitutes with respect to
environmental and energy balances 107
Topic 1.2: Competitivity of wood - Is wood losing market share? 119
The competitive climate for wood products and paper packaging; the
factors causing substitution with emphasis on environmental promotion
120
Potentials for the European woodworking industries to enhance the use of
wood 131
Topic 1.3: Is increased consumption of wood sustainable? 132
Outlook for long-term supply of and demand for forest products on the
European Forest Sector Outlook Studies 133
Wood supply for the growing European pulp and paper industry 146
Impacts of the EU energy policy on the woodworking industries - The
sound use of wood from an industries perspective 155 Session II: How to stimulate sound use of wood? 167
Topic 2.1: Strategies and policy instruments 168
Wood promotion in Germany - a joint initiative of forestry and the wood
based industry since 1990 169
Governments' role in wood promotion 183
Policy for wood consumption in Romania 196
Project "Capacity Building to Improve Trade Finance and Investment
Prospects for the Russian Timber Sector" 210
Topic 2.2: Wood promotion campaigns, communication and education 213
Promoting wood construction in the EU 214
Promotion of wood and forest products in New Zealand 217 Session III: New markets and consumption patterns 231
Topic 3.1: Bioenergy 232
Bavaria pushes for biomass use 233
Topic 3.2: Managing climate change risks 247
Managing forests for adaptation to climate change 248
Afforestation of bad lands financed through Joint Implementation
Projects 260
Topic 3.3: Innovative products and uses 271
Modeling and forecasting the demand for sawnwood in western Europe from
an end-use perspective 272
The United Kingdom wood for good programme 288 Session IV: Strategies for sound use of wood in central and eastern Europe
291
The wood market in central and eastern Europe 292
Improvement of the organization of forest use in Russia 295
The sound use of wood and other resources in Romania 303
Romanian and Bulgarian responsible timber trade opportunity for the
region 317 Session V: Trade and environment 321
Topic 5.1: Certification 322
PEFC Council international perspectives 323
Forest certification - experiences with PEFC in Germany 333
FSC certification as a tool for socially and environmentally responsible
trade 343
Forest certification in Romania and the marked perspective 351
Illegal logging in the context of the sound use of wood 358
Topic 5.2: Supply chain issues: chain of custody, procurement, etc.
371
Sound use of wood: new markets or new obstacles to trade? 372
Sourcing timber from responsibly managed sources 375
FSC certification and strengthening legal compliance in the forest
products trade 384 Poster session 397
The FAO-ECE Forest Communicators Network 398
The reservation price for auction - the first step towards a sound use
of wood 401
A better use of growing stock and remaining trees by means of market-
oriented instruments 402 Papers of speakers cancelling their participation in the Seminar 403
Realizing market possibilities for increased use of wood in Norway - A
national strategy including: promotion, research, competence and
investments 404
Bioenergy - traditional fuels traded into new markets 408
Use of wood and wood products in the light of the climate change
discussion 419
Working on strategies for the sound use of wood in Hungary 426 Foreword
Wood is used for a broad range of end products as well as for energy
generation throughout the world. Wood has been in constant competition with
other materials and products such as synthetics, concrete, steel, ceramics,
glass and fossil fuels. The decisions on utilisation of a raw material or
energy source are taken within a technical, financial, regulatory and
cultural framework. Therefore, it is important to understand the factors
influencing the choice and to compare the performances of wood and its
substitutes when using them in different applications (building,
manufacturing of products, energy generation, etc.). The revival of a wood-using culture in Europe, with the focus on wood as a
renewable material and energy source contributing to sustainable practices,
requires stimulating demand. This is essentially about education focused on
wood's functionality, performance, natural qualities, energy potential and
fitness for sustainable consumption. Implicit in achieving this is the
involvement of governments, industry, consumers, communities, opinion
leaders, NGOs and other stakeholders. Although wood is generally recognised by the public as an environment
friendly material, it is less known that a balanced consumption of wood is
a necessary part of sustainable forest management and important for the
forests' welfare. There is a long and unfortunate history of gaps of
understanding between the forestry sector and the key parties, whereas
value resides in closing these gaps by widespread exchange of information. Objectives of the Seminar So far, the international dialogue on forest has focused on the "upstream"
aspects of sustainable forest management, although many major policy
statements, including the Rio "Forest principles", the IPF/IFF proposals
for Action and Lisbon resolution L1, have also mentioned downstream issues
linked with markets, consumption and trade. They have stressed the
importance of sound and sustainable consumption patterns as an integral and
necessary part of the sustainable development of the sector as a whole. The objective of the Seminar was to place sound use of wood and sustainable
patterns of consumption in the wider context of sustainable development,
and explore possible policy options, for governments and other
stakeholders. It also addressed, from the sustainability perspective,
certain complex issues related to consumption and markets, including life
cycle analysis, promotion of wood, certification and chain-of-custody,
communication with, and education of, the public, trade and environment
issues. The Seminar objectives were in line with the scope of work and
recommendations of various international organizations including:
. Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe,
. United Nations Forum on Forests,
. World Summit on Sustainable Development. The Seminar outline was based on the comparative advantage of the UNECE/FAO
integrated programme, one of the few international programmes to combine
upstream and downstream issues in a single framework. The Seminar was intended for policy makers and analysts, and a wide range
of stakeholders and researchers, as well as trade and industry associations
and environmental NGOs, etc. Rationale Romania invited the UNECE Timber Committee and the FAO European Forestry
Commission to hold the seminar at the occasion of their joint session in
2000. Several reasons supported the idea for holding the seminar on sound
use of wood in Romania. First, its national forestry policy and strategy
foresee the development of the Romanian forestry sector based on the
sustainable management of forests, improving efficiency of exploitation and
development of high value-added products. Romanian forestry industry has
therefore a good potential to transform