Forest Certification in Maine
The Maine Forest Certification Initiative
Maine is the national leader in forest certification, with 37% of the
state’s productive forestlands certified. Eighty-seven percent
of Maine’s certified forestlands involve private industrial and
non-industrial parcels larger than 5,000 acres. By contrast, only
5% of certified forestland is on private parcels smaller than 5,000 acres;
the remaining 8% is on lands owned by the state of Maine. In addition,
Maine’s first-in-the-nation Master Logger Certification program
has certified over 100 loggers.
In July 2003, Governor John E. Baldacci launched the Maine Forest Certification
Initiative and directed the Maine Forest Service to establish a Certification
Advisory Committee. The purpose of this initiative was to “help
grow Maine’s
forest industry by distinguishing Maine products in the marketplace while
improving forest management on –the-ground. The Committee
was charged with developing recommendations in four areas:
- What can be done to increase the amount of land and wood products
that are certified in Maine?
- What can be done to increase the number of businesses producing certified
wood products in Maine?
- What can be done to enhance the markets for certified forest products
form Maine and distinguish Maine in the global marketplace for certified
products?
- Review certification systems in use in Maine and recommend changes
to make them more effective in achieving sustainable forestry.
In addition, the Committee recommended a supplementary goal: To
complement and supplement the Governor’s goal of 10 million acres
of certified forestland, the state of Maine and Maine's forest products
industry should seek to increase the volume of wood from certified sources
to 60 percent of the statewide total by the end of 2009 and to ensure
that buyers desiring to secure even higher percentages from Maine sources
are able to do so.
Currently some 7 million acres of forestland in Maine is certified by
various systems, including approximately 500,000 acres of
public land, 6 million acres of large-parcel private lands, and 350,000
acres of small –parcel private lands.
The
Maine Forest Certification Initiative
The Final Report of the Maine Forest Certification Advisory Committee -
January 28, 2005
Disclaimer:
The Maine Forest Service does not endorse any particular forest
certification system.
Certified Forest Land in Maine Map - December 30, 2008 (pdf) 