Document 3
Principles, Indicators and Guidelines for SGEC Forest Management Certification
Requirements for Forest Management Certification

Contents
Foreword
1. Scope
2. Terms and definitions
3. Requirements for SFM Standards
Principle 1: Identification of the forest areas which are subject to the certification anddefinition of the management policy in the forest areas
Principle 2: Conservation of biological diversity
Principle 3: Conservation and maintenance of soil and water resources
Principle 4: Maintenance of productive capacity, health and vitality of forest ecosystem
Principle 5: Legal and institutional framework for sustainable forest management
Principle 6: Maintenance and enhancement of socio-economic benefits
Principle 7: Monitoring and disclosure of information
Attachment 3-1: Handling wood products produced by infrastructure construction in forest
Attachment 3-2: The chemicals classified as WHO Type 1A and 1B the use of which are
exceptionally allowed by the provision given in SGEC Document 3 “Principles,
Indicators and Guidelines for SFEC Forest Management Certification - Requirements
for Forest Certification

Appendix : Outlines of Forest Planning Systemrefer to http://www.rinya.maff.go.jp/j/keikaku/sinrin_keikaku/index.html
Foreword
This document aims to develop a rich society based on a material cycle system and to contributeto conserve greenery rich natural environment, for fulfilling multiple functions of forests such as
economic, ecological and social functions within given natural and social conditions based upon
the concept of the Montreal Process Criteria and Indicators framework, through widely
disseminating the concept of sustainable forest management and promoting effective use of wood
products from sustainably managed forests as well as upgrading the level of forest infrastructuresand enhancing forest activities by market mechanisms in Japan.

1.

Scope

Principles, Indicators and Guidelines for SGEC Forest Management Certification stipulated in
Article 3, Section 1 of Operational Rules of Forest Management Certification and Forest Products
Chain of Custody Certification by SGEC shall be provided herein.
As to forest management, conditions followed by forest managers are stipulated in the frameworkof regional forest plan in Article 5 of Forest Act and Municipal Forest Management Plan in Article
10-5 of Forest Act. This document covers specific requirements for forest management under
SGEC system in addition to the conditions under forest planning system above. The
requirements in SGEC scheme shall be applied with the evidences from scientific research as well
as specific forest settings and legislative and policy trend.
If forest manager apply for SGEC forest management certification independently, it isrecommended that all his/her forests managed may be under a forest management plan which is
subject to be certified. In addition, it is mandated that all his/her forests within a regional forest
plan or a municipal forest management plan shall be under a forest management plan which is
subject to be certified in order to maintain consistency between certification system and forest
planning system.
Any inquiry on the SGEC, the Japanese language version is the official document for the matterslinked to the SGEC system and the English language version is the official document for thematters linked to the PEFC.
Note: Principles, Indicators and Guidelines for SGEC Forest Management Certification shall be
expressed in three figures such as 1-1-1. The first figure shall be the number of Principles, thesecond figure shall be the number of Indicators and the last figure shall be Guidelines related.
2.

Terms and definitions
2-1 Planted forest and natural forest
Planted forest is established through planting or seeding of specific tree species which occupy
more than 50% of the stand either by volume or number. Natural forest is the ones which
are not planted forest.
2-2 Forest
Forest is under the scope of forest planning system stipulated in Forest Act as follows:(1) Land with trees and/or bamboos in a group as well as its standing trees/bamboos(2) Land for trees/bamboos growing in a group
2-3 Forest conversion
The direct human-induced conversion of forests to other types of land use including2

conversion of primary forests to planted forests.
2-4 Primary forest
Forest of native species where there are no clear visible indications of human activities andthe ecological processes are not significantly disturbed.
Note: Includes areas where non-wood forest goods are collected with less human impact.
Some trees may have been removed.
2-5 Normative references of international conventions and domestic acts, which should be
followed or respected.
(1) International conventions
Forest managers shall follow the fundamental ILO conventions in general.
Conventions which are not ratified in Japan among those listed shall be respected,
and forest managers shall follow the domestic acts related to the area relevant tosuch conventions.
(a) Fundamental ILO conventions
 ILO No. 29: Forced Labor Convention (1930) ratified by Japan in 1932
 ILO No. 87: Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize
Convention (1948) ratified by Japan in 1965
 ILO No. 98: Right to Organize and Collective Bargaining Convention (1949)
ratified by Japan in 1953
 ILO No. 100: Equal Remuneration Convention (1951) ratified by Japan in1953
 ILO No. 105: Abolition of Forced Labor Convention (1957) not ratified byJapan
 ILO No. 111: Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention(1958) not ratified by Japan
 ILO No. 138: Minimum Age Convention (1973) ratified by Japan in 2000
 ILO No. 182: Worst Forms of Child Labor Convention (1999) ratified by
Japan in 2001(b) Other international conventions
 Convention on Wetlands of International Importance especially as Waterfowl
Habitat (1971) ratified by Japan in 1980
 Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna andFlora (1973) ratified by Japan in 1980
Convention concerning the protection of the world cultural and natural
heritage (1972) ratified by Japan in 1992
Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals(1979) not ratified by Japan
Convention on Biological Diversity (1992) ratified by Japan in 1993
Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (2000) ratified by Japan in 20033

 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (1992) ratified
by Japan in1993
 Kyoto Protocol to the UNFCCC (1997) ratified by Japan in 2002
 Conventions and Agreements for Protection of Migratory Birds
 ILO No. 169: Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Conventions (1989) not ratified
by Japan Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (2001) ratified by
Japan in 2002
 Declaration on the Right of Indigenous Peoples adopted at UNGA (2007)
affirmative voted by Japan
 International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial
Discrimination (1965) ratified by Japan in 1995
(2) Domestic acts Forest and forestry basic act
 Forest act
 Act on special measures concerning the improvement of public health functionsof forests
 Forest cooperative act
 Act on advancement of modernization of rights in relation to forests subject tocommunity Forestry seeds and seedlings act
 Act on special measures concerning shared forest
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Landslide prevention act
Wildlife protection and proper hunting act
Act on conservation of endangered species of wild fauna and flora
Act on special measures concerning promotion of securing forest work force
Act on special measures for ensuring stable timber supply
Act on special measures concerning promotion of forest thinning operation
Act on forest pest and disease control
Rules and guidelines of forest road
Basic environmental act
Nature conservation act

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Natural park act
Act on promotion of nature restoration
Basic Act on Biodiversity
Act on protection of cultural properties
City planning act and related special measures acts
Water cycle act
Urban green space conservation act
4 Act on prevention of disasters caused by steep slope failure Agricultural chemicals control act
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Explosives control act
Fishery act
Quarrying right act
Surveying act
Road transportation act
National land survey act
Real property registration act
Invasive alien species act
Act on special measures concerning water quality conservation at water resourcesarea to prevent the specified difficulties in water utilization

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
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Act on protection of cultural properties
Act on maintenance and improvement of traditional scenery in certain districts
Coast act
River act
Erosion control act
Labor standards act
Industrial safety and health act
Labor union act
Health insurance act
Employees’ pension insurance act

 Employment insurance act
 Act on special measures concerning taxation
 Act on promotion of Ainu culture and dissemination and enlightenment ofknowledge on Ainu tradition
 Relevant local regulations related
2-6 Genetically modified trees
Genetically modification techniques include the processes of extraction of targeted genetic
material, modification of genetic material as necessary, and incorporation into a hostorganism. GM trees are the ones in which the targeted genetic material has been artificiallymodified by the above mentioned techniques.
2-7 Forest planning system
Forest planning system is a framework program for promotion of sustainable management offorests in Japan through establishing rules and guidelines of forest management in national,
prefectural and municipal government levels as well as fulfilling respective responsibilities
based upon the needs of the people in Japan. See the structure of forest planning system in
Figure 1 below and the detail information of forest planning system in
http://www.rinya.maff.go.jp/j/keikaku/sinrin_keikaku/index.html.
5National Government
Basic Plan for Forest and Forestry
Ministry of Agriculture,
Forestry and Fisheries
National-wide Forest Plan•••

Direction of national policy for national-wide forests
Standard for the Regional Forest Plan
A 15-year plan, revised every 5 years

Prefectural
Governors

Heads of Regional
Forest Offices

Regional Forest Planfor private forests

Regional Forest Plan
for national forests

•

•

•
•
•

Direction of prefectural policy for
private forests
Targets for logging, reforestation,
forest roads, and protection forest, etc.
Standards for the Municipal Forest
Management Plan
A-ten-year plan, revised every 5 years•
To be coordinated•Direction of forest management fornational forests
Targets for logging, reforestation,
forest roads, and protection forest, etc.
in national forest
A-ten-year plan, revised every 5 years

Municipalities

Forest owners

Municipal Forest Management
Plan

Forest Management Plan

•
•
•

•

Direction of municipal policy for private
forests
Guidelines/code of practice regarding
logging, reforestation, etc.
A ten-year plan, revised every 5 years••

A five-year plan for logging,reforestation, etc. prepared by private
forest owners
Become effective upon approval bymunicipal mayors
Preferential treatments to be given in
tax breaks and financial services

Figure 1: Structure of Forest Planning System in Japan
2-8 Satoyama“Satoyama” are woodland, adjacent to human settlements, which havemaintained/managed under close linkage with human activities.
2-9 Group forest management certification
Certification of the group organization under one group forest certificate.

been

The term of “group organization” is equivalent to the term “regional forest certification” orother terms chosen by individual forest certification schemes where a number of individual
forest owners are certified under one certificate. The term “regional forest certification” isto be understood as “group forest certification” limited by geographical boundaries.

3.

Specific requirements for forest management certification
6

Principle 1: Identification of the forest areas which are subject to the certification anddefinition of the management policy in the forest areas
1-1

1-1-1

1-1-2

1-1-3

1-2

1-2-1

1-3
1-3-1

Ownership/tenure right of the land and its forest resources shall be clearly
identified and management policies as well as operational/silvicultural plans
are available.
Land registry, forest registry or forest management plan documents, in which
forest owner or tenure right owner is registered, shall be available and thesites randomly selected from the documents shall be identified on-site.
If the administrator is different from the owner or tenure right owner of theforest concerned, owner’s will shall be identified through assignee contract
document concerned.
In case of group forest management certification, requirements for plannedand proper management of group forest concerned shall be clearly identified,through plan, organization and responsibility and others by which all forests
owned by members of a group shall be uniformly managed, and requirements
for group forest management certification shall be met.
Forest inventory registry documents, in which location wise area of forest
concerned, distinction of planted forest and natural forest, species
composition or forest types, age and growing stock according to species
composition or forest types are available, shall be provided at any time.
Forest registry or forest inventory registry or other equivalent registry
documents are provided at any time, and these documents shall be updated
by five year cycled forest inventory.
The location of the forest concerned shall be clearly identified on-site and in
the documents.
1:5,000 scale map, in which location of forest concerned is identified by a lot
number, is provided at any time and the sites randomly selected from the map
shall be identified on-site.

1-4 A forest management plan with the term of 5 years (including 10 year plan whichis established in every 5 years) or a forest management plan in compliance withthe municipal forest management plan (hereinafter referred to as “forest
management plan) shall be established, and the basic policy toward sustainable
forest management shall be developed.

7Note；A forest management plan with 5-year term is the one that may be accreditedby the relevant municipal mayor if the mayor judges the forest management plan
to be statutory and in compliance with the municipal forest management plan.
Such accreditation constitutes one of the requirements for receiving official
assistance to forest management.
However, since a forest management plan in general is developed in accordancewith the relevant municipal forest management plan, and forest managers canformulate a 5-year forest management plan or a 10-year forest management plan
to be developed every 5 years.
Considering the above, ‘forest management plan’ in Principles, Indicators andGuidelines in this document refers to both statutory and not statutory forest
management plans unless otherwise stipulated, and the statutory one is referred toas ‘accredited forest management plan’, where necessary
1-4-1 As to forests managed under the forest management plan approved by the relevant
municipality, the forest management plan together with the approval document
shall be available all the time, and the implementation of the forest management
plan shall be verifiable on site. The basic forest management policy shall beverifiable by the long-term policy on the implementation of the planned forest
operations. The status of the implementation of the forest management shall beverifiable on site and its record shall be kept as the evidence of the conformity
with the forest management certification standard.
1-4-2

1-4-3
1-5
1-5-1

1-5-2

Principle 2:

Management objectives of respective forests under a forest management plan
shall be clearly stated and composition of targeted forest associated withmanagement objectives and character of forest and its approach shall be
stated in a balanced manner.
Management principles considering environmental impacts shall be stated.
Management system and its operation, which can carry out forest
management in line with forest management plan, shall be conducted.
Management system and its operational organization shall be well arranged
for execution of forest management plan and the role, responsibility andauthority of respective person in charge shall be clear.
Forest owner and management assignee shall try to improve the content ofmanagement continuously.
Conservation of biological diversity

8

2-1

2-1-1

2-1-2

2-1-3

Since long-term conservation of biological diversity of forest will contributeto provide economic and social benefits, management principles forconservation of biological diversity at landscape level as well as for major
forest types at stand level shall be stated.
The following items for biological diversity shall be stated in forest
management plan:a. Fundamental management principles on maintenance and improvementof diversity of ecosystem, species and gene based upon character of forest,
b. Appropriate management plan on maintenance and improvement of
biological diversity at landscape level,c. Technical guidelines on some representative forest types in terms of
maintenance and improvement of biological diversity.
If primary forest or similar natural forest exists in the area, strict management
based upon management principles for preservation shall be conducted andadjacent buffer zone management principles shall also be available.
Conversion of primary forest to planted forest shall not occur unless, inprinciple, in a small area within the limit of 1% of the primary forest and injustifiable conditions such as follows:a.
The impact of conversion deems to be negligible in light offundamental management principles on maintenance, improvement andother aspects of diversity of ecosystem, species and gene, as defined in thisstandard.
b.
Conversion does not violate the regional forest plan, municipal forest
management plan and relevant acts and legislations related to theconservation of ecosystem such as Nature Conservation Act and Natural
Parks Act.

2-1-4

With regard to conversion of forest to other types of land use, the conversion
shall be undertaken within, in principle, the limit of 1% of the certified forest
area (or the limit of 5ha in case that the certified forest area is less than 500ha)
in an appropriate manner based upon, in addition to the previous clause:
Principle 2 “Conservation of biological diversity” and Principle 6“Maintenance and enhancement of socio-economic benefits” of thisdocument; Protection Forest System, Forest Planning System and Forest
Land Development Permission System defined by Forest Act; relevant acts
and legislations such as Nature Conservation Act and Natural Parks Act.
9

Forest conversion also shall make a contribution to long-term conservation,
economic, and social benefits.
2-1-5

Those planted forests, which does not have justifiable reasons for conversion
after 31 December 2010, shall be treated as disqualified forests which failed
to meet the requirements stipulated in this document.

2-2

Primary elements (natural forest including primary forest, Satoyama forest,
grass land, wetland, pond, farm land and so on) for securing biologicaldiversity in the area shall be clearly identified in the map and management
principles shall be stated.
Constituting elements in the area shall be clearly identified in the map. As

2-2-1

2-2-2

2-3

2-3-1

2-3-2

2-4
2-4-1

2-4-2

to primary elements for maintaining biological diversity among them, floraand fauna in the area shall be recorded and primary species of them shall be
under the technical guidelines for conservation and management.
Appropriate conservation plan as well as management plan for riparian forest,
wetland or biotope shall be available.
Appropriate conservation measures shall be provided for the species and theirhabitat under the categories of Critically Endangered, Endangered,
Vulnerable and Near Threatened in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Existing information of biological diversity in the area and adjacent area shallbe extensively collected and recorded. If flora and fauna in the IUCN Red
List are found in the area, the habitat shall be identified and strictly protectedin accordance with the protection plan. Those sites, where rare flora andfauna seem to inhabit based upon the experts opinion, shall be conserved
through protected forest establishment based upon the expert advice.
As a part of rare flora and fauna protection, measures shall be taken throughprotection of the standing trees worthy for nest tree, protection of standing
dead wood, hollow trees and fallen dead wood worthy for bait of insects andbirds and improvement of their habitat environment.
Appropriate conservation measures shall be provided for natural vegetation
and wild flora and fauna including understory vegetation.
In order to maintain and improve the habitat environment for wild flora andfauna, understory and forest edge vegetation shall be maintained. Measuresfor protection of rare natural vegetation shall be taken.
Collection of wild flora and fauna shall be limited within the level ofsustainability and improper actions shall be prevented. If the forest manager
10assumes the responsibility over picking of wild life, he/ she shall regulate,monitor and control such activities.
2-4-3

2-4-4

New introduction of alien species shall be carefully considered to avoid its
negative effect on the ecosystem. If introduction is decided, carefulmonitoring of its negative effect shall be conducted.
On the construction of infrastructures such as forest roads or check dams,
precaution measures (side ditch and crossing ditch of forest road and fish
ladder) not hampering growth and propagation of small animals shall be
conducted. The constructional materials for such infrastructures shall befrom bio-materials as appropriate and those infrastructures shall be designedwith environmental integrity and minimizing the damage to the ecosystem.

Principle 3: Conservation and maintenance of soil and water resources
3-1

3-1-1

3-1-2

3-1-3

Impact of activities on soil and water resources conservation shall be
conducted in advance for minimizing the negative impact in forest
management plan and its operational process.
While recognizing change in the environment or level of conservation inconnection to forestry operations such as logging and forest road
construction, items related to the environmental consideration shall be put inorder and be fully disseminated into the contractors and operators.
The area requested for special consideration in soil and basin systemconservation shall be identified in the map and the appropriate measures forenhancing soil conservation functions shall be taken.
In the case of forest road and bridge construction design, exposure of baresoils shall be minimized, soil flow into water course shall be avoided andwater course and its bed shall be maintained. Also appropriate surface
water drainage of forest road shall be allocated and maintained.

3-2

Appropriate protection forest belt shall be set up in case of logging in thearea of windswept ridges, basin system (including seasonal ones) and road
side.

3-2-1

Protection forest belt shall be properly set up in the area of ridges and streams
for soil, water resources, biological diversity and landscape conservation.
Such protection forest belt shall be identified on-site based upon the map in
the forest management plan.
Vegetation in protection forest belt shall be maintained with the vegetation
associated with site specific conditions. If soft wood artificial plantation
forms current vegetation, introduction to soft wood and hard wood mixture

3-2-2

11

forest shall be planned.
3-3

3-3-1

3-3-2

3-4

3-4-1

3-4-2

3-5
3-5-1

In the course of logging, skidding and log transporting, upon considering
effect on adjacent water resources and protection function against debris flow,
measures for protection of forest floor surface shall be carefully taken.
If logging is planned in the area requested for consideration in soil and basin
system conservation such as forest with high protection function against
disaster in mountain or high risk area of disaster in mountain, type of logging
and size of logging area shall be consistent with soil and water resources
conservation.
In the case of forest designated as water resources
maintenance and improvement forest under municipal forest management
plan, logging plan shall be fit to in the standards and models under municipal
forest management plan. In the case of other forest shall also be taken careof water resources conservation in the basin if logging or planting operations
are planned.
As to method and season of logging, skidding and log transporting, measuresfor protection of forest floor surface and prevention of water pollution shallbe carefully taken in accordance with technical manuals appropriately madeby the environmentally friendly methods reflecting the site conditions suchas geographical features, soil and vegetation.
Measures shall be taken to avoid spillage of chemical materials such as fueland oil for machinery or other contaminant as well as agricultural chemical
into basin system.
Measures shall be taken to avoid soil or water pollution based upon the
manuals in which storage place, storage method and usage rules of fuel, oiland other chemicals are regulated. Leakage and unregulated dumping of oil
during forest management operation shall be strictly avoided in accordancewith b by the manuals. Non-organic waste shall be collected and stored indesignated area with environmentally sound method.
In case of fertilizer use, it shall be applied in controlled manner and with
ample consideration of the environment.
Soil and water conservation measures shall be taken for forest road andskid track construction.
In the course of road and skid track planning, technical manuals based upon
the rules and regulations of forest road and of forest conversion shall be taken
into account. Such planning shall be conducted in a way that minimizes theenvironmental impact on the natural conditions of the site and the12characteristic of water use in downstream thereby paying as well as pays full
attention to water and soil conservation.
3-5-2

Structure of management of forest road and skid track shall be organized andappropriate maintenance service shall be conducted.

Principle 4: Maintenance of productive capacity, health and vitality of forest
ecosystem

4-1

4-1-1

4-1-2

4-1-3

4-2

4-2-1

4-2-2

Forest manager shall assess the economic, social and ecological impact,taking account of the development process of forest management planning,
forest inventory data, the implementation of the plan and the result ofmonitoring, build up a cycle of sustainable improvement of forest management
and establish an appropriate operational structure for implementation.
Forest management plan shall be elaborated and implemented in a way thatrecognizes, maintains and promotes the importance of multiple values of theforest concerned.
As to planning and implementation of forest management plan, biologicalprecaution measures associated with natural site conditions shall be fully
utilized from the context of maintenance and enhancement of forest
soundness and vitality. As to implementation of forest management, inparticular, logging method, regeneration method and regeneration species(including resistant bred seedlings against biotic and abiotic damages)
associated with soils, climate and other conditions of the site shall be selected
in a way harmonizing natural environment and enhancing resilience of theforest of the site.
Sustainability of long term forest management shall be considered throughgrasping resources status based upon the result of sample plots monitoring
and leveling age class composition.
Harvesting level shall be within the level of forest management plan. Large
scale clear cut shall be avoided and non-clear cut operation shall be
conducted in sites deem necessary. Harvesting of non-wood forest products
shall be set within a level of sustainable management.
Harvesting plan shall be appropriate and feasible in terms of the management
objectives and resources composition of the forest concerned. Harvesting
operation plan shall be documented with the information such as the site to
be harvested, the method of harvesting in each site, the ratio of harvesting,the size and volume of the site and the season of harvesting.
Technical manuals for harvesting methods, age and ratio shall be developed
13with due consideration of conservation of soil and water, biological diversity
as well as landscape conservation. Non-clear cut operation shall be
conducted wherever possible and hard wood species shall be retained in soft
wood species dominant forests in erosion-prone areas. Depending on the site
condition, introduction of multi-storied forest or operational method with due
consideration of ecosystem shall also be considered.
4-2-3
Harvesting in the forest under the approved forest management
plan shallbe implemented in line with its approved plan. Harvesting in other forest shallfollow the standards under Regional Forest Plan and Municipal Forest
Management Plan).
4-3

4-3-1

4-3-2

4-3-3

4-3-4

Regeneration after harvesting shall be carried out within a planned period.
Site specific suitable species shall be planted in artificial regeneration based
upon the record of silvicultural operations in the past.
Harvesting and regeneration record in the last five or ten years shall beverified in documents in which regeneration shall be appropriately plannedin correspondence to harvesting plan. Duration for regeneration shallfollow the standards under municipal forest management plan.
Technical manuals for regeneration method, species and numbers of trees
regenerated shall be developed and operational plan for regeneration shall beavailable for identification of the site, site specific regeneration method, sizeof the site, species and planned period for regeneration.
Selection of species in artificial regeneration shall be based upon thetechnical reasonableness such as the principle of site specific suitable species
including the aspects of water resources conservation, protection from soil
erosion and environmental conservation. Seeds or seedlings shall be fromlocal provenances. Introduction of alien species shall be avoided if
negative effect on the ecosystem is assumed. Genetically modified trees
shall not be used for the time being.
In artificial planting, site specific method which takes account of soil erosion
prevention, site conservation as well as high survival rate and good growth
shall be selected. Survival survey of the planted seedling shall be
periodically conducted and fill up planting shall be done in the area of deadtrees. In case of large size tree dead or bad growth, replanting by
appropriate species selection shall be taken based upon the survey analysis
of such causes.

4-4

Appropriate forest management plan for natural forest (including stamp
sprouted forest) shall be elaborated while taking due consideration of14

characteristics of the site and appropriate operations for regeneration shall be
conducted.
4-4-1

4-4-2

Management activities in natural forest described in forest management plan
shall be appropriate to regional forest management plan as well as municipal
forest management plan. Harvesting and regeneration in natural forest shallbe planned in a manner of mutually coordination from technicalreasonableness point of view.
Operational plan for harvesting andregeneration shall be available for harvesting method, its volume and planned
period for operation.
In natural forest management, tree selection guidelines, based upon theoperation methods and forest phase and type, and technical guidelines suchas ratio of felling and its cycle shall be developed. In order secure proper
regeneration after harvesting, regeneration assistance operations such astreatment of soil surface and supplementary planting shall be planned based
upon forest phase and type as well as conditions after harvesting.

4-5
4-5-1

4-5-2

4-5-3

Tending plan shall be clearly developed with appropriate implementation
based upon the site condition.
Technical guidelines for tending methods and its timing shall be developed.
In order to enhance species diversity and multi-layered root system,
hardwood species or non-targeted species shall be retained in the precommercial thinning as appropriate.
Tending operation record in the last five or ten years shall be verified andupcoming sites for tending and site specific methods, volume and timing
shall be available in documents.
If the number of wild animals inhabited is significant and causing damage toforest, precautious measures to reduce the animal pressures on the growthand biodiversity of forest shall be taken. Moreover, forest is used for
grazing, appropriate precautious measures shall be taken,

4-6

Thinning which will introduce target forest type shall be properly planned
and implemented.

4-6-1

In comparison with age class composition of forest resources as well as tree
density in each stand, thinning necessary stand shall be properly planned withidentification of thinning sites, site specific thinning ratio, its volume andtiming. Those stands designated as thinning necessary stand in municipal
forest management plan shall have its implementation plan.
Thinning technical manuals for thinning method, its ratio, its age, its intervaland stand density shall be developed. In thinning operation, hardwood

4-6-2

15

species, standing dead wood, hollow trees in the site shall be retained as
appropriate.
4-6-3

Thinning operation record in the last five or ten years shall be available.
Judging from the status of thinning operation, thinning shall be properly
conducted in comparison with stand age and density.

4-7

Appropriate prevention measures against pests, disease and animal damage
shall be taken. The use of chemicals such as pesticides shall comply withthe laws and regulations and shall limit minimum level.
Forest pest and disease control plan in the forest management plan shall beconsistent with act on forest pest and disease control and wildlife protection
and proper hunting act and shall be relevant to maintain biological diversity

4-7-1

4-7-2
4-7-3

and soil and water conservation.
Outbreak record and associated measures of forest pests, disease and animal
damage in the last five or ten years shall be available.
The use of forestry chemicals (including herbicide) shall be minimized. Whenused, a control manual shall be established in compliance with theAgricultural Chemicals Regulation Act and other relevant regulations, andthe chemicals shall be used in accordance with the manual.
Notwithstanding the above, the “WHO Type 1A and 1B” pesticides shall be
prohibited, except where no other viable alternative is available. In this respect,
the chemicals to which alternatives do not exist are defined and listed in
Attachment 3-2 as the chemicals exceptionally allowed.

4-8

4-8-1

4-8-2
4-8-3
4-8-4

4-8-5

Prevention and remedial measures against forest fire and severe weather
disaster shall be prepared. In case of use of fire, Article 21 of Forest Act
stipulates lighting of fires in forest shall only be conducted with permission
and conditions by the head of the municipal government related.
With reference to forest fire and severe weather disaster, forest patrol staff
and insurance coverage as well as awareness raising programs for employees,
volunteers shall be available.
Forest fire fighting training for employees shall be conducted in collaboration
with related organization and equipment for fire fighting shall be stored.
Reforestation plan in fire damages area shall be prepared with site specificregeneration methods and its size.
Conversion of abandoned agriculture lands back to forests shall be taken into
consideration if such conversion may lead to increase in economic,
environmental or cultural values.
If natural ecosystem targeted to maintain and conserve is destroyed or16degraded in primary forest and similar natural forest, restoration measures
based upon the use of natural recovery power shall be taken.
Principle 5: Legal and institutional framework for sustainable forest management
5-1
5-1-1
5-1-2
5-1-3

5-1-4

5-1-5

All domestic acts and international conventions ratified shall be compliedwith.
All domestic acts and international conventions ratified shall be compliedwith.
All acts relevant to forest management shall be ready to refer and the
documents and records justifying law compliance shall be available.
Forest manager shall promote to prevent unauthorized activities, including
illegal ones by setting sign boards and other media for proper protection offorest.
Forest manager shall set up opportunities for hearing the opinions of local
people and define the procedure for resolving complaints and disputes fromthem in relation to forest management.
Forest manager, recognizing that the Ainu living around the northern part of theJapanese
Archipelago,
especiallyin
Hokkaiddo,
aretheindigenous people who have their original language, religion and culturalcharacteristics, shall give consideration, from a forest management viewpoint,
to promotion of the Ainu policy based upon “the Experts` report on the
promotion of the Ainu Policy” (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Report’), while
respecting ILO No.169 and UN Declaration on the Right of Indigenous
Peoples, and following Act on the Promotion of Ainu Culture, andDissemination and Enlightenment of Knowledge about Ainu Tradition, etc.
(hereinafter referred to as ‘the Ainu Culture Promotion Act’ ) andInternational Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial
Discrimination.
Moreover, forest manager in the district where the Ainu are living shallhave a process/mechanism to hear views of a regional organization(s) of Ainu
as a stakeholder through explanatory meetings or other measures ofcommunication and consult with them on the matters related to managementof the forest concerned in accordance with FPIC. With respect to theconsultation, forest manager shall also have a process/mechanism to arrive ata fair solution, while respecting/following the above-mentioned conventions,declaration, etc.
Note 1: Application of this principle should be conducted in accordance with the
PEFC standard documents, and should not be distinguished between “respecting”
17and “following” in weighing importance.
Note 2: FPIC: Free, Prior and Informed Consent
Note 3; “Ainu Culture Promotion Act” was enacted in 1997, aiming to realize asociety in which the pride of Ainu people as an ethnic group is respected.
“Advisory Council for Future Ainu Policy” was established within the Japanese
government, in response to the “Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples(UNDRIP)” adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 2007, and the“Resolution to Recognize the Ainu as an Indigenous People” adopted by theHouse of Representatives and the House of Councilors in 2008 based on the aimof international conventions on human rights such as International Convention on
the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination.
Afterwards, the final report of the advisory council, released in July 2009, statedthat the future Ainu policy should be developed based on the recognition ofindigenousness of Ainu people. Furthermore, following the above report, the“Council for Ainu Policy Promotion” was established in the Government in orderto promote integrated and effective Ainu policy reflecting opinions of Ainu peopleetc.
In light of the above historical context, the Government is currently promoting
policies in which priorities are put on promotion, enlightenment and disseminationof Ainu culture, and improvement of livelihood of Ainu people.
5-2
5-2-1

5-2-2
5-2-3
5-2-4
5-2-5

Legal, customary or traditional rights to use local forest property andresources shall be respected .
Existence of common rights and fishing rights or other customary rights inthe forest applied for certification shall be clarified and its status in the forest
management plan shall be available.
When the common rights are recognized, users’ right and benefits shall beproperly secured in the forest management plan based upon the status of use.
Forest management shall be associated with promotion of long term healthand welfare of the communities within and adjacent the said forest.
Forest manager shall respect traditional forest management practices inSatoyama and other area as far as economically feasible.
Forest manager shall identify the stakeholders by using appropriate
information, provide explanation to those stakeholders who are potentiallyaffected by the forest management and hear their views on the matters related
to forest management. If necessary, forest manager shall also hear from themunicipal office concerned the process of discussions by experts who review
the municipal forest management plan.
In the course of developing forest management plan, forest manager shall18

make the best use of local forest-related experience and knowledge, such as
those of local communities, forest owners, NGOs and local people.
5-3
5-3-1

5-4

5-4-1

Employees and contractors shall be properly trained and guided on biologicaldiversity in the course of management plan implementation.
Training and guiding texts on work safety and biological diversity shall beavailable and employees and contractors training shall be conducted.
Forest manger shall assure that the employees and contractors follow theforest management criteria, indicators and guidelines (forest management
standard) and take necessary measures for improving the employment
environment such as professional skill up training or registration to the social
security system and recognize the status of the implementation of suchmeasures
Forest owner or forest manager shall comply with the fundamental ILO
conventions (except from those conventions not ratified by Japan), labor
standards act related to ILO No. 105 and No. 111, both of which are not
ratified by Japan as well as other relevant domestic acts and shall enroll social
security system such as employee’s unemployment insurance, healthinsurance, pension insurance and retirement allowance mutual fund. Forest
owners or forest managers shall try to let the employees, who do not legallysatisfy the requirements, enroll such systems. Status of social security
enrollment in contractor’s employee shall be reported.

5-4-2

Employees’ skill up training and guidance policy for log processing, forest
management, forest inventory, field supervising, management planning andsales shall be available and such training shall be conducted.

5-5Necessary training and guidance of employees and contractors on worksafety shall be conducted.
Work safety manuals and guidance, its check sheet, its daily report, risk
assessment report and record of accident while at work shall be provided to
employees and contractors. Work safety training, self-daily work safety
check, risk assessment, work safety inspection and work safety and health

5-5-1

5-5-2

training shall be conducted.
Employer shall have institutional safety and health management structure
based upon labor safe and health act and associated rules and regulations.

Principle 6: Maintenance, enhancement of socio-economic benefits and contribution
to the prevention of global worming

19

6-1

6-1-1

6-1-2

6-1-3

6-1-4

6-1-5

6-1-6

Certified forest products including non-wood forest products, as sustainable
recyclable/reusable green resources, shall be effectively used in various
purposes and contribute to the local economy with increased job
opportunities through collaboration with local community and stake holders.
Level of harvest of wood and non-wood forest products shall not exceed thelong term sustainable level. Forest products harvested shall be effectively
utilized as they are precious resources.
Use of various certified forest products shall be promoted with the CoC
organizations and shall disseminate the knowledge and experiences throughacquisition of forest management certification into local community widely.
Certified forest products shall be physically separated and delivered to theusers at log processing stage and delivering stage. Forest manager shall aim
to achieve sound economic activities taking consideration of market analysis,
feasibility study of new market as well as full range of goods and services offorest.
In construction or maintenance of forest roads, skid tracks or check dams aswell as facilities for education and recreation, certified forest products shallbe effectively used.
Infrastructures such as forest roads and skid tracks shall be designed,
constructed and maintained for effective deliberation of forest goods andservices while minimizing negative impact on the environment.
Conversion of forest to other land use related to forest infrastructures shallbe properly conducted in accordance with relevant acts and regulations
within minimum impact associated with sustainable management of theforest related.

6-2

6-2-1

6-2-2

The space and opportunity shall be provided for the citizen to come in touchwith the nature seeking for, for example, forest recreation, and theenvironmental education or safety guidance to the visitors shall be provided.
The space and opportunity shall be provided for the citizen to come in touchwith the nature seeking for, for example, forest recreation. Large size
employers shall have their own the environmental education programs andexplanation board for the visitors. Forest roads, skid tracks and foot-paths
for the visitors’ use shall provide safety facilities, sign board and explanation
board.
Awareness raising activities for the visitors to take their garbage home withthem shall be conducted and the waste shall be processed outside the forest
as appropriate.

20

6-3

Forest designated for recreational use or landscape conservation shall betreated for such purposes.

6-3-1

Zoning of recreational use or landscape conservation area shall be designedin the forest management plan. Such area shall be designed facilities layout,
forest layout and its management suitable for landscape improvement andamenity improvement.
Those restricted forest in the municipal forest management plan shall meet
its rules and regulation in landscape conservation or recreational use.
Facilities of forest recreation shall be located or planned to meet the
expectation of beneficiaries, the rules and regulations of environmental
conservation and forest conversion as well as rules and regulations of forest
management plan for public health function.

6-3-2
6-3-3

6-3-4

Public access to forests for recreational use shall be properly arranged withdue consideration of forest owner’ rights and use rights, impact on forest
resources and its ecosystem and balance with other functions.

6-4

Cultural and historic site and highly valued forest in terms of resources orsociety shall be protected.
Forest management plan shall identify the designated cultural properties
under the act on protection of cultural properties, the sites locally recognizedas cultural or historical importance, the local symbolic forests popular among
local community, giant trees popular among local community and high

6-4-1

6-4-2

valued forests in terms of science. The guideline of treatment shall also be
stated.
Other forests, not regulated by the act on protection of cultural properties,
shall have consideration on conservation with the content of forest
management recognized appropriate by the local community. Those forests
shall be served as demonstration forests or model forests which serve social
benefits proactively and conduct its public relations activities.

6-5Management, tending and use of forest shall be contributed as a sink ofcarbon against the global warming.

6-5-1

Improvement of carbon sequestration capacity shall be aimed throughappropriate forest treatment for increase carbon sequestration capacity or atleast avoid decreasing the capacity and effective use of forest residues andthinning logs.
Use of fossil fuels shall be minimized as possible in forest management andtending operations.

6-5-2

21

6-6

Forest managers shall actively and properly contribute to data collection
related to research activities in sustainable forest management, in
consideration of the principle that forest management shall be conductedbased upon scientific research results.

6-7

Forest management plan shall take into account the use of relevant
government policies and subsidy measures for fulfilling various functions
designed in the municipal forest management plan.

Principle 7: Monitoring and disclosure of information
7-1

Monitoring, as a tool for evaluating the effects of implementation of forest
management plan, shall be implemented periodically. The result of monitoring
shall be reflected on to implementation and revision of the management plan as
appropriate.

7-1-1

7-1-2

The level of performance and its environmental impacts shall be evaluatedwith on-site verification of the check list for the performance of the plan inmonitoring. Items not implemented shall be identified by the reason and its
counter-measures. Monitoring process shall be reviewed by the internal
auditing in verification, evaluation and improvement points.
The Check list of monitoring shall include the items which verify theperformance of forest management plan’s achievement such as
pest/disease/animal damage, frost/snow damage, forest fire including naturalfire as well as operations’ impact on ecosystem soundness and vitality.

7-2

7-2-1

7-3

7-3-1

Collaborative monitoring system shall be established with the local
governments, if they conduct the indicator species monitoring for estimating
holistic biological diversity in the region.
The contents of collaboration and status of operations with the third parties
who conduct biological diversity monitoring shall be verified.
Various data related to the forest concerned shall be recorded and kept asmuch as possible. In case of forest operations conducted, category-wise,
fiscal year-wise and site-wise operational record shall be kept.
Site-wise and fiscal year-wise operational record shall be kept. Site-wise andfiscal year-wise damage status of pests and disease, animals, forest fire,severe weather shall be recorded. Status of enrollment in and compensationfrom forest insurance shall be recorded.
22

7-4

7-4-1

Forest management plan and its monitoring results shall be confidential ingeneral; however, the summary information shall be open to the public inprinciple.
The method of open to the public, including the venue, the perusal method
and procedures, shall be stated or planned to develop for forest management
plan, its operation record and check list for biological diversity. However,such documents shall not be open to be public as personal information, secretdocuments stipulated in relevant acts and regulation, and secret information
linked with natural environmental conservation.

Supplementary article 1
The Board of Directors, on 28th March 2014, has decided to amend this Operational Rules.
Supplementary article 2
The Board of Directors, on 1st April 2015, has decided to amend this Operational Rules.
Notwithstanding this amendment, the previous Operational Rules may be effective up until
30 September 2015.
Supplementary article 3This document (amended on 10th February 2016) will be effective on 1st April 2016..
Notwithstanding the above, the previous Operational Rules may be effective duringtransitional period of endorsement and mutual recognition by PEFC.
Supplementary article 4This document (amended on 14th October 2016) will be effective on 1st November 2016.
Notwithstanding the above, the period until 1st January 2017 may be regarded as a transition
term.

23

Attachment 3-1
Handling wood products produced by infrastructure construction in forest

The area for infrastructure construction in SGEC certified forest shall be regarded as a part offorest area designated for forest management. Wood cut from the area of infrastructure
construction shall be treated the wood products produced under SFM in SGEC scheme.
In this connection, the infrastructures in such area shall be designed and be constructed in site
specific condition friendly manner as a part of SFM. These constructional activities shall be,
therefore, taken under the category of SFM.
Supplementary article
The Board of Directors, on 1st April 2015, has decided to amend this Attachment.

24

Attachment 3-2:
The chemicals classified as WHO Type 1A and 1B the use of which are exceptionallyallowed by the provision given in SGEC Document 3 “Principles, Indicators andGuidelines for SGEC Forest Management Certification - Requirements for Forest
Certification

Note
The chemicals the use of which are exceptionally allowed are limited to the following;
1. Zinc Phosphide
When using this chemical, forest manager shall establish the control manual in compliance with theAgricultural Chemicals Regulation Act and fully assure not only the prevention of accidents but also theconservation of natural and living environment.

Supplementary Article
This document will be effective from 1st January 2016.
Notwithstanding the above, SGEC may define the period of time until the acquisition of PEFC
Endorsement as transit period.

25