ANNEX CHAPTER 6:
Environment
Document SA-S-SD-24
Version 1.1

Published on February 6th, 2023
Binding from July 1st, 2023
Included in this document:
S12 Additional Details on Requirements for No-Conversion
S15 Additional Details on Conservation and Restoration Areas
Outside Farm Boundaries© 2023 Rainforest Alliance. All rights reserved.

The Rainforest Alliance is creating a more sustainable world by using social and market forces toprotect nature and improve the lives of farmers and forest communities.

Name of the document

Date of firstpublication

Expires byAnnex Chapter 6: EnvironmentJuly 1st, 2022

Until further notice

Linked toSA-S-SD-1 Rainforest Alliance 2020 Sustainable Agricultural Standard, Farm Requirements
Replaces

Applicable toSA-S-SD-24-V1 Annex Chapter 6: Environment

Farm Certificate Holders

Annexes are binding and must be complied with for certification.
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contact the Rainforest Alliance Amsterdam Office, De Ruijterkade 6, 1013AA Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
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For any question related to the precise meaning of the information contained in the translation, please refer tothe official English version for clarification. Any discrepancies or differences in meaning due to translation are notbinding and have no effect for auditing or certification purposes.
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OVERVIEW OF KEY CHANGES
Overview of key adaptations in this document
SA-S-SD-24-V1.1 Annex Chapter 6: Environment, published on February 6th, 2023,
compared to the previous version
SA-S-SD-24-V1 Annex Chapter 6: Environment, published on July 1st, 2022
SectionSubjectChange1

Identification of Conversion

Text corrected and clarified

3

Planned Minor
Infrastructure

Conversion

for

Added: Clause 3.iv
Prior to converting, farm or groupmanagement must obtain approval from theRainforest Alliance. To receive approval,management
submitsaplan
tofarmcert@ra.org including the reasons, planand polygons of the area to be converted.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
S12 Additional Details on Requirements For No-Conversion ................................................................. 41.

Identification of conversion ........................................................................................................... 42.

Minor Conversion That Has Already Occurred ........................................................................... 4

3.

Planned Minor Conversion for Infrastructure ............................................................................... 5

S15 Additional Details on Conservation and Restoration Areas Outside Farm Boundaries .............. 7
1.

Conditions for conservation or restoration area outside the certified farm boundaries ....... 7

2. Conditions for the auditability of conservation or restoration areas outside the certified farmboundaries ............................................................................................................................................... 7SA-S-SD-24-V1.13

S12 ADDITIONAL DETAILS ON REQUIREMENTS FOR NOCONVERSION
Requirement 6.1.1 sets January 1, 2014, as the cut-off date after which no deforestation orconversion may occur. Any deforestation or conversion occurring later than this date renders agiven area or production unit as non-compliant with the Rainforest Alliance Sustainable
Agriculture Standard and may be cause for decertification or non-certification. However, for themanagement of infrastructure and for minor cases of deforestation or conversion that can beremediated, some flexibility is provided as detailed below.

1. IDENTIFICATION OF CONVERSIONThe Rainforest Alliance’s deforestation risk maps give an indication of potential past conversion(specifically deforestation) on farms for which geodata has been provided. Rainforest Alliance riskmaps are updated each time the geolocation data is updated. The risk maps are available tocertificate holders on the RACP.
Farm and group managers must use the Rainforest Alliance risk maps to identify areas andproducers at particular risk of non-compliance, assess the risks and take steps to manage themappropriately.
It is important to note the risk maps cannot always distinguish between conversion and forms oflegitimate land use change such as:•Forest plantations that are harvested and converted to agricultural use but do not involve
conversion of natural ecosystems;•Harvesting of shade trees that does not involve conversion of natural forests•

Tree cover loss that occurred before the 2014 cut-off date;

Farm and group managers need to investigate identified risks to determine the most appropriate
management solution.

2. MINOR CONVERSION THAT HAS ALREADY OCCURRED
Large Farms and individual farms
For large farms (including those certified as part of a group) and individual farms,
conversion of forests or other natural ecosystems to agricultural production or other land
uses that occurred after January 1st, 2014, must not comprise more than 1% of the land of
the farm or more than 10 hectares (whichever is smaller). For conversion that has occurred
within this threshold, farm management must develop a restoration/compensation planshowing how the conversion of forest or ecosystem will be remediated in collaboration
with an ecologist. The planned restoration must be:•Proportional: The area to be restored must be at least as big as the converted area.
This requirement can be met by taking the converted area out of production andrestoring it, or by restoring and/or providing compensatory conservation benefits
on a nearby area.

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•

Equivalent: The ecosystem to be restored must be equivalent to the lost natural
ecosystem in ecological value. If the value of the restored area is or will be lower
than that of the converted area, then a larger area must be restored.

•Additional: The restoration activities must be additional to the activities planned forother reasons including compliance with the Rainforest Alliance requirements onnatural vegetation.

•Permanent: The restoration activities must be designed in a way to ensure longterm viability, including funding, management responsibilities, and clear land
designations and land rights.

The plan shall include intermediate time bound targets, clear responsibilities of activities,
and a plan for monitoring at least once every three years.
Group certification
For group certification, conversion of forests or other natural ecosystems to agriculturalproduction or other land uses that occurred after January 1st, 2014 must not comprise
more than 1% of the total land of the group or more than 10 hectares (whichever issmaller). For conversion that has occurred within this threshold the group must implement
measures to remediate and avoid further conversion. These measures may include:•Establishment of a sanctioning system for group members to prevent furtherdeforestation.

•Implementation of awareness-raising measures or training for group members.

•Development and implementation of an agroforestry plan to mitigate loss of priorconservation values by transitioning an area at least three times the convertedarea. The plan includes intermediate time bound targets, clear responsibilities ofactivities, and a plan for monitoring at least once every three years with the goalof reaching the agroforestry targets within 6 years. This plan is included in the farmmanagement plan.

•Plan to collect polygons of farms units of all producers of medium and high risk ofdeforestation and encroachment to protected areas.

3. PLANNED MINOR CONVERSION FOR INFRASTRUCTURE
Conversion of natural ecosystems up to 1% of the total certified land area to maintain or expand
infrastructure essential for farm or processing operations may be permitted under the following
conditions:i.

Conversion may take place only for the reason of installing new farm infrastructure orrepairing or modernizing existing farm infrastructure (e.g., roads or irrigation
infrastructure, including pumping facilities, channels, ponds, reservoirs, dams, andimpoundments), permanently installed machinery, or facilities for washing, processing,or packing.

ii.

Farm or group management documents the plan for the installation in advance,
including the reason why the proposed infrastructure installation or repair cannot be
carried out without converting the relevant area.

iii.

Polygons of the overall certified land as well as the converted area are collected todemonstrate that the land area to be converted is below the allowed threshold of 1%

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of total certified land. NB The 1% threshold is the cumulative total allowable area fromthe first date of application for certification.
iv.

Prior to converting, farm or group management must obtain approval from theRainforest Alliance. To receive approval, management submits a plan tofarmcert@ra.org including the reasons, plan and polygons of the area to beconverted.

v.

The conversion fully complies with Requirement 6.1.2 of the RA 2020 SustainableAgriculture Standard.

vi.

The conversion fully complies with applicable law.

vii.

The conversion is consistent with any designations or recommendations regarding High
Conservation Values contained in any HCV assessment(s) of the site or area.

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S15 ADDITIONAL DETAILS ON CONSERVATION AND
RESTORATION AREAS OUTSIDE FARM BOUNDARIES
1. CONDITIONS FOR CONSERVATION OR RESTORATION AREA OUTSIDETHE CERTIFIED FARM BOUNDARIESThe following conditions are applicable regarding requirement 6.2.3 when it is not possible toachieve the percentage of natural vegetation on the farm without a reduction in the productive
agricultural area. Producers have the option to complement the area of on-farm vegetation withconservation or restoration areas outside the farm boundaries under these conditions:i.

Producers can have conservation or restoration areas outside the farm boundaries only ifthey are not able to reach the required percentage of natural vegetation on their farms.

ii.

Producers do not convert existing natural vegetation on the farm into other land uses.
Conservation areas outside farm boundaries can only be used to complement existing
and additional on-farm vegetation. Eternal conservation areas cannot be used to replace
on-farm vegetation.

iii.

Producers can have part of the required percentage of natural vegetation on their farmand a percentage of natural vegetation as conservation area outside the farmboundaries. For instance, a producer may have 5% of natural vegetation on the farm and
5% outside the farm.

iv.

The conservation or restoration area outside the certified farm boundaries effectively
provides long-term protection of that area for at least 25 years.

v.

The conservation or restoration area outside the certified farm boundaries yields additional
conservation value and protection status relative to the status quo: the area is maintained
or improved in terms of biodiversity value.

vi.

The conservation or restoration area outside the certified farm boundaries is in a similar
ecosystem to the certified farm. For instance, if the certified farm is in an area where
rainforest is the predominant ecosystem, the conservation area is located in an area inwhich rainforest is predominant.

2. CONDITIONS FOR THE AUDITABILITY OF CONSERVATION OR
RESTORATION AREAS OUTSIDE THE CERTIFIED FARM BOUNDARIESi.

Certificate holders provide polygon data for the conservation or restoration area(s)outside farm boundaries.

ii.

Certificate holders indicate the size (ha) of the conservation or restoration area(s) as wellas the percentage this represents in relation to certified farm area.

iii.

Certificate holders show documentation demonstrating that the conservation orrestoration area(s) can be provided with effective long-term protection for at least 25years.

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iv.

The auditor visits the conservation or restoration area outside farm boundaries at least
once every six years. Certificate holders pay any extra costs of auditing the conservation
or restoration area outside the certified farm boundaries, e.g., for auditors to travel to theconservation or restoration area(s) for verification.

v.

Certificate holders may provide drone images and/or high-resolution satellite images asevidence to show that the conservation or restoration area(s) yields additional
conservation value and protection status relative to the status quo. The auditor has theauthority to define whether the evidence is sufficient and whether there is a need to visit
the conservation or restoration area.

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