FC Wales meets UK Woodland Assurance Standard
 Background/context
Whether it be a small garden gate, a complete timber frame for a new home, wood chip for fuel or specialist supports for bridges, the desire to obtain wood and wood products from an environmentally sound source has been on the increase since the early 1990s. Description/why "With rising consumer concern about the environmental impacts of forest management, particularly with growing awareness of the links to climate change, Forestry Commission Wales has been practising sustainable woodland management for many years now. In May 1999, we welcomed the introduction of independent certification through the UK Woodland Assurance Standard and now all of the woodland and forestry managed by us on behalf of the Welsh Assembly has attained UKWAS certification. This amounts to some 126 479 hectares across Wales and involves the commitment of all FC Wales staff to achieve and maintain this 100% certification. Initially, and now annually, we are audited against every element of the Standard to check that our policies for sustainable woodland management are carried through to the ground level. The auditors look at all our plans, from strategic to operational, and speak not only to FC Wales staff but also to contractors, and where appropriate hauliers and timber merchants too, to ensure that all of our practices meet their thorough requirements. Most importantly, this means that where trees are felled for various uses, we have robust plans in place to restock the woodland and to manage it thereafter to ensure continuity of woodland cover. It also means that we look after the wildlife that need the woodland as a natural habitat by protecting parts of the forest from felling and providing a mosaic of habitat. Our preference is to work with local contractors and partners where we can and to encourage use of the woodlands to support the local community. These aspects of our management are also scrutinised by the UKWAS auditors. For the consumer, our certification through UKWAS is a guarantee that all wood and timber products from an FC Wales woodland automatically carry good environmental credentials." Future projects "The Assembly woodlands are audited every year and we will continue to manage these woodlands to achieve UKWAS and to do all that we can to have a positive impact on climate change. Although climate change is a complex subject, with many viewpoints and underlying causes, there is little doubt that our forests are vitally important and that managing them to maintain a balanced ecosystem can only be beneficial in the long-term."
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