by Curtis Runyan

(Washington, DC, March 2004) When European timber companies, environmental groups, research organizations, and African forestry officials sat down in early March in Douala, Cameroon to negotiate the future of logging in central Africa, the discussion took an unusual turn. After years of debating how to track logging practices in remote African rainforests, industry groups invited Global Forest Watch to start keeping tabs on their logging operations.

“It’s a big step, the logging companies are asking us to monitor them and their practices in Africa,” said Dr. Ralph Ridder, deputy director of WRI’s Global Forest Watch. “This is a breakthrough for improving the management of central Africa’s forests.”

The central African rainforest, which is the second largest in the world after the Amazon, is threatened by poor governance and forest management. Illegal activities are commonplace, logging often extends beyond concession boundaries or into protected areas, and harvests often surpass the allowable timber cut. Widespread corruption in the region has been an obstacle to instituting better practices.

Logging companies are under growing pressure from consumers in the European Union to ensure that the timber they sell is responsibly harvested. Some European countries are moving towards closing markets to all tropical timber lacking a certificate of legal origin.

Consequently, industry is concerned that it may lose sales in European markets unless it develops a legitimate system to document forest management practices. So a number of more progressive logging companies approached Global Forest Watch to serve as an independent monitor. GFW has partnered with the InterAfrican Forest Industries Association (IFIA), the World Conservation Union (IUCN), and the World Wildlife Fund to develop a monitoring system that can independently document the industry’s logging practices in the region, and highlight the companies that are making the most significant strides toward sustainability.

The higher prices for timber paid in European markets provides an incentive to for companies to improve their practices to retain access to these markets. “When the monitoring process is up and running, it could be a win-win for the forests and the companies,” said Dr. Ridder.

The process began a couple of years ago, when an industry group representing many companies logging in central Africa, the IFIA, began drafting a code of conduct for improving the social and environmental performance of its companies.

At the meeting in March, the participants agreed to be monitored on more than 30 performance measures that will be used to track the impact of their logging. They will be monitored on their forestry practices, their compliance with laws, and their efforts to minimize environmental impacts. For example, the companies will be measured on their use of reduced-impact logging techniques, how well they consult with local communities, and whether they control access to their logging concessions to help minimize poaching.

“These companies expect that there will be a positive market reaction if they make these changes,” said Dr. Ridder. “They are convinced that the better acting companies will rise to the top of the market.”

To ensure transparency and neutrality, the industry has agreed to allow its logging data be reviewed by Global Forest Watch. “Ideally forest monitoring would be conducted in a way that is open and transparent to all parties,” said Jim Beck, a researcher at WRI. “The best way to ensure this is to have a neutral third party conduct the monitoring in collaboration with governments, industry, and non-governmental organizations. It is a monumental task in the Congo Basin, given the challenges facing countries there.”

“This move by industry alone will not create sustainable forestry in central Africa,” said Stephen Cox, the executive director of Global Forest Watch. “But it is a positive new development that could lead to a vast improvement in the management of Africa’s rainforests.” (WRI Features, 624 words)