International Agreements and Protocols

Overall, forests are important to the health of the global environment and economy. In recognition of the global importance of forests, in 1992, at the Rio Earth Summit, The Statement of Forest Principles and Agenda 21 were adopted by world leaders to recognize the importance of forests to sustainable development (UN-DSD 2007). After the summit, several regional and international initiatives on criteria and indicators for sustainable forest management were developed.

The Montreal Process

The largest of these initiatives, The Montreal Process, relevant to most of the worlds temperate and boreal forests, began in 1994 and includes Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, China, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, New Zealand, Russian Federation, United States, and Uruguay (MPCI 2005).

Representatives of the Montreal Process countries met in 1995 and drafted a set of seven national level criteria and 67 indicators to aid in the conservation and sustainable management of temperate and boreal forests. These criteria and indicators are used by forest managers, policymakers, and the general public. The national level criteria include:

1. Conservation of biological diversity
2. Maintenance of productive capacity of forest ecosystems
3. Maintenance of forest ecosystem health and vitality
4. Conservation and maintenance of soil and water resources
5. Maintenance of forest contribution to global carbon cycles
6. Maintenance and enhancement of long-term multiple socio-economic benefits
7. Legal, institutional, and economic framework for forest conservation and sustainable management

Each of the 67 indicators relates to one of the seven criteria categories. The indicators are both quantitative and qualitative and provide information relevant to present and future forest conditions (MPCI 2005). The criteria and indicators undergo continual review to ensure that new advances in research, technology, and measurement capabilities are incorporated into the process.

One requirement of the Montreal Process is the production of national reports to be available to the public. These reports provide information on the current and future state of a nations forest. Reports for each of the Montreal Process countries can be found on their website.

The many challenges to implementing the Montreal Process include involving all forest stakeholders in the process, collecting the appropriate data, interpreting trends, and making necessary changes. In response to these challenges, the implementation of the Montreal Process criteria and indicators signals a willingness on the part of governments and forest industry to manage forests in a sustainable manner. International agreements defining the criteria and indicators of sustainable forest management provide a framework for the development of certification systems, and provide specific indicators required for monitoring in Adaptive Forest Management.