Certification
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Certification: Context

The wood products industry has been under intense scrutiny in recent years as environmentalists, consumers, landowners, and policy makers have sought to achieve a balance among production, the stability of resource-based economies, and the long-term sustainability of our nation's forests. A number of initiatives have resulted, and the focus has primarily been upon land management, production practices of wood products industries, and the safety of individual loggers.

The Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), and Canadian Standards Association (CSA) certify that wood products industries are managing their lands in a manner that will not jeopardize the availability of forest resources for future generations. The International Standardization Organization (ISO 14001) certifies production practices, ensuring that mills are operated in a safe and efficient manner. The Certified Logging Professional (CLP) program in Maine certifies the technical and safety skills of individual loggers working in wood harvest operations in Maine, and other New England states run similar training programs. (MLC companies put each of their harvest employees though these programs).

While these initiatives have led to improvements, one element of the wood products industry remains largely unmonitored. Wood harvesting companies, ranging from sole proprietors to large-scale businesses with multiple employees, have perhaps the greatest direct impact on the health of the forest ecosystem. Their operations supply raw material for wood products industries, but they also have the potential to conserve or compromise water and soil quality, wildlife habitat, biodiversity, and forest aesthetics.

Recognizing the need to certify natural resource harvesting companies, the Professional Logging Contractors of Maine began to develop the Master Logger Certification (MLC) Program in January 2000. A draft MLC document outlining the certification requirements was written and widely distributed to wood harvesters, forest products industry representatives, and policy makers during the spring and summer of 2000. Their feedback was incorporated into the document, and the MLC program was prepared for the piloting process. The first cohort of MLC companies began the certification process in January 2001 and were certified on July 31, 2001. Subsequently, in 2005, an independent non-profit organization - the Trust to Conserve Northeast Forestlands - took over the administration of the MLC program, creating the conditions for MLC's status as a third-party certification system. Since then, 7 cohorts of logging companies in Maine have been through the MLC process, and four of those groups have gone through at least one recertification process. Recertification reviews of MLC companies take place every two years, with random audits in between.

As of October 1, 2007, the Maine and Southern New England Master Logger Certification programs have merged to create the Northeast Master Logger Certification Program (NEMLC)—including logging companies in Maine, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. As of Dec. 1, 2007 there are 136 Master Logger Certified companies in New England. NEMLC continues to collaborate with MLC programs in Atlantic Canada (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, PEI), Wisconsin, and Minnesota.

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Headlines

12/04/2007 Volvo backs energy efficient forestry machinery... read

07/04/2007 Coming Soon: EPAT 2.0... read

07/03/2007 Metafore and The Gagliardi Group co-author "The Paper Consumer's Guide to Climate Change"... read

Standards in Focus

Water Quality - Crossings - Temporary Bridges

Written Safety Plan

Documentation of Harvest Planning

Use of the Maine Natural Areas Program