Michigan has more than 19 million acres of forest land that provide recreation, products such as paper and lumber and beautiful vistas. Our forests protect soil, air and water quality, support biological diversity, wildlife and aquatic populations, and maintain diverse plant communities.

In recent years, many citizens and stakeholders here and throughout the world have asked that forest managers demonstrate that they are practicing sustainable forest management. Sustainable forest management means meeting the needs and values of today without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs and values.

Over the past decade, forest certification systems have developed to assess forest sustainability. Each system has a set of standards or principles that address legal compliance, forest productivity, reforestation, forest health, biodiversity, planning, and soil and water protection as well as monitoring and improving practices.

In the United States there are three prominent certification systems, each with a slightly different approach: the Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI), the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Standards and the American Tree Farm System (ATFS).

The SFI program has its origins in the U.S. and is focused on applied forest management and on maintaining a high standard of forestry performance. The FSC program is an international system that emphasizes social values and the environmental value of natural forest ecosystems, to which it adds an important economic dimension. The ATFS program is geared toward private family forest landowners.

All three certification systems require an evaluation by qualified, independent, third-party auditors, and a certification certificate is issued only if acceptable conformance with the standard is demonstrated.

In 2005, at the direction of Governor Jennifer Granholm and the Legislature, the Department of Natural Resources certified its 3.9-million acre state forest system under both the SFI and FSC programs, becoming the largest single dual-certified landowner in Michigan and one of the largest in the nation.

"Michigan is now one of only 10 states dual-certified under the SFI and FSC programs," said Dennis Nezich, DNR forest certification specialist in Marquette.

To become certified, the Michigan state forest system underwent a rigorous two-week audit in September 2005, whereby on-the-ground forest practices were appraised against a set of forest certification standards that address environmental, social and economic issues.

"The auditors appraise how effectively current management maintains forest health and productivity," Nezich said. "Certification is critical to Michigan from an economic standpoint," Nezich explained. "Major wood product consumers, such as Time Warner, now require the paper they use be produced from a certified forest which is well-managed and legally harvested. Certification of Michigan forests demonstrate that our forests are managed in a sound and comprehensive way."

In order to maintain certification, annual surveillance audits are conducted in order to verify continued conformance with the standards. Certification must be renewed every five years with a large scale renewal audit. It is an adaptive system that strives for continual improvement.

"Forest certification keeps our forests competitive with forests in other states and around the world, in terms of timber products and goods," said DNR Forest, Mineral and Fire Management (FMFM) Division Chief Lynne Boyd. "It is fundamental that we maintain certification to retain and create jobs, continue to manage forests for wildlife habitat and recreation opportunities, and maintain overall forest health."

The Michigan state forest system recently celebrated its centennial, and DNR personnel continue to dedicate themselves to maintaining a healthy and productive forest.

During the October 2008 surveillance audit, auditors noted "the sustainable forestry program of the Michigan DNR has many clear strengths which factored strongly into the finding of continuing conformance with the certification requirements."

The auditors stated, "On-the-ground collaboration between the FMFM, Wildlife, and Fisheries divisions is a very positive aspect of Michigan DNR's management, and demonstrates the staff's commitment to managing for multiple ecological values.

"Overall, DNR's management of the state forests is on a steady course despite the increasing challenges associated with budget reductions and staff limitations."

Consumers can identify wood products coming from certified, well-managed forests by product labeling. Both SFI and FSC have unique labels that you can search for the next time you purchase lumber or paper products.

Before a product may carry the SFI or FSC label, all stages of the production, from the certified forest to the finished product, must be tracked and independently evaluated.

Certification of Michigan's state forest system clearly demonstrates a commitment to excellence and to sustainable management, and since certification in December 2005, the DNR has demonstrated continuing conformance with the SFI and FSC standards.

More information about forest certification efforts in Michigan is available under the "Forests, Land and Water" section of the DNR's Web site at www.michigan.gov/dnr.