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Dept for Environment Food and Rural Affairs

Answer

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps have been taken by the Government since the Rio Earth Summit in 1992 to (a) set goals on environmental protection and (b) improve eco-efficiency and resource productivity relating to forestry issues; and what these (i) goals and (ii) improvements have been. [44382] Mr. Meacher: The management, conservation and sustainable development of forests was one of the key issues at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio. The main outcome for forests was the adoption of a Statement of Forest Principles which included a commitment by countries to publish national forest programmes. In 1994 the UK set out its aims for forestry in Sustainable Forestry--the UK Programme. In 1999, we published our strategy for sustainable development for the UK, A Better Quality of Life. This includes a section on forests and woodlands setting out the contribution that forestry can make to meeting sustainable management of forests in the UK. We also facilitated the development of the UK Woodland Assurance Standard for forest certification and environmental labelling of wood products. About 40 per cent. of the UK's woodlands have now been certified, including the entire public forest estate. The UK has made considerable progress on forestry issues by increasing timber production and the environmental and social outputs from forests. These outputs are reported in British Timber Statistics and Forestry Commission Facts and Figures, which are in the Library of the House. Following consultation with stakeholder groups and the public, the Forestry Commission will be publishing a new set of indicators of sustainable forestry in the UK. These will make an important contribution to the monitoring processes set out in A Better Quality of Life and the UK Forestry Standard.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

383 c602W;383 c600W; 44382

Session

2001-02

Subjects

Environment protection Forests Standards UN Conference on Environment and Development Sustainable development

Link

View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk