Comparative analysis of the requirements of the Russian forest legislation and FSC forest certification

Abstract

Nowadays, internationally recognized voluntary forest certification schemes are widely used in Russia: more than a third of all forests leased to loggers are certified according to international standards. At the same time, the State Duma of the Russian Federation has made a proposal to develop a domestic forest certification system to protect national interests. The purpose of this article is to identify the similarities and differences between the requirements that are stated in Russian forest legislation and international forest certification standards in the example of The FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) National Forest Stewardship Standard of Russian Federation. This, in turn, will explain on what basis it is advisable to form a set of rules for the Russian national forest certification system. As a result of the research, we found that at the conceptual level, Russian legal acts in the field of forest management and related areas mostly coincide with the requirements of the FSC and can form the basis of the Russian national forest certification system. Both of the systems aim to protect forests from pollution and to preserve the every kind of forest resource; however, FSC requirements are more stringent in terms of how the aforementioned procedures are to be managed – according to these requirements, loggers must develop guidelines containing ecological rules for forest use and educate their workers about these rules. FSC regulations that are connected with pest control are stricter in comparison with the regulations of Russian legal documents (the former emphasises the use of mostly non-chemical methods); the same is true for FSC regulations connected with biodiversity and the maintenance of high conservation value forests, including intact forest landscapes. It is in the preservation of intact forest landscapes that the FSC scheme differs from the requirements of the Russian legislation the most. The FSC scheme sets the percentage of forested areas in which felling is permitted. With respect to social aspects, both systems set a high bar in the area of the rights of workers and work conditions, but FSC regulations are more stringent in terms of considering the interests of the local communities and, in particular, indigenous populations. During the formation of the Russian forest certification system, it is reasonable to consider mechanisms that take into account ecosystem services of forested areas.

Keywords

• forest protection
• forest legislation
• national forest stewardship standard for russian federation