Forest Certification

image: Pine ForestWhat is Forest Certification?

Forest Certification is a voluntary third-party process to identify and recognize well-managed forestland. In the context of Forest Certification, sustainability includes maintenance of the ecological, economic, and social components of forests and surrounding communities.


Through chain-of-custody certification, fiber from certified forestland can move through production streams, thus enabling the end product to receive a certified logo informing customers that the product came from a certified, well-managed forest and was manufactured responsibly.


Domestically, there are two major internationally recognized Forest Certification systems for public land: Forest Stewardship Council® (FSC) This link leads to an external site. and the Sustainable Forestry Initiative®(SFI) This link leads to an external site..


To become certified or maintain certification, certificate holders must successfully undergo annual audits, conducted by independent, accredited auditing firms.

image:FSC logo

graphic logo of SFI

SFI-00076

DNR's Commitment to Forest Certification

Certified Forests in Minnesota

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Map pdf

In 1997, Minnesota DNR (DNR) and Aitkin County obtained third-party Forest Certification for about 370,000 acres of forest lands. These were the first public forest lands to be certified in the United States, thereby establishing MNDNR and Aitkin County as nation-wide leaders in Forest Certification.

 

In 2005, DNR obtained dual (FSC and SFI) certification of 4.5 million acres, primarily covering all State Forests, administered by the Division of Forestry, and most Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs), administered by the Division of Fish & Wildlife. In December, 2010, DNR's Forest Certification program grew to 4.96 million acres, covering 90% of the total *5.53 million acres managed by DNR. Today, MNDNR is the largest single FSC certified land manager in the U.S.

 

Maintaining Forest Certification demonstrates and re-affirms DNR's dedication to sustainable and responsible forest management. Forest Certification provides DNR and Minnesota citizens with many additional benefits...

*as of June 2008 | Forest Certification Fact Sheet pdf