High Conservation Value areas – a plantation forestry perspective

High Conservation
Value areas – a
plantation forestry
perspective
Peta Hardy Sappi Forests, Mpumalanga
and Sappi-Usutu November 2007

Overview
1.Background
– setting the scene
2.The HCV concept and its interpretation
by forestry companies
3.Monitoring of High Conservation Value
(HCV) areas
4.Other initiatives

Extent of Plantation Forestry in SA
Background
COMPANY/ORGANISATION
PLANTED AREA
(HA)
MONDI 251 000
UNPLANTED
(HA)
% OF TOTAL
SAPPI 247 900 132 314 34.73%
HANS MERENSKY 69 000
YORK 67 000 28 000 29.8%
MASONITE 17 600
STEINHOFF 39 000
MTO 72 500 42 500 36.9%
AMATHOLE 5 000
CO-OPS (nct,twk,ctc,ucl) 23 600
COMMERCIAL - MED 297 102
EMERGENT FARMERS 45 000
SUB TOTAL PRIVATE 1 121 602
KLF 130 000 60 000 32.03%
MUNICIPALITIES 3 895
DWAF 26 024
SUB TOTAL PUBLIC 159 919
GRAND TOTAL 1 281 519

MPUMALANGA FORESTRY
SAPPI
MONDI BP
KLF
GFP/ YORK
MAP farmers

History of Environmental
Management - Plantations
Background
• 1970s – no formal conservation management
• Late 1980s – introduction of environmental auditing
• Early 1990s – increasing pressure resulting in the
development of policies and procedures
Bigalke R 1990. Guidelines for the Application of Conservation practices in
Production Forestry. Forestry Council
1992. Afforestation on the Eastern Transvaal Escarpment: An investigation of
Conservation Policies and Practices. Flora Conservation Committee, Botanical
Society of South Africa.
• Late 1990s – introduction of certification: FSC
and ISO 14001

Plantation Forestry and Certification
-FSC
Background
Company Year Type of certification
obtained
Mondi/York 1997 FSC
NCT Group 1999 FSC
Scheme
Sappi (part) 2000
1999
FSC
ISO 14001
Sappi (entire) 2003 FSC, ISO 14001,9001
Certification and the HCV Concept

Principle 9: Maintenance of HCV Forests
Background
Management activities.. .shall maintain or enhance
attributes.. Which define such forests.
Requirements of Principle 9.
•Identify HCV areas (map or CUs)
•Have uptodate management plans
•Records of work done
•Recommendations of monitoring must be reflected in plans
•Proof of implementation (or a plan to implement)

What are HCV Areas?
The HCV Concept
They are areas that receive priority for conservation because of:
FSC Standard – HCV Forests
•Forest areas containing globally, regionally or
nationally significant concentrations of biodiversity
values and/
•or large landscape level forests where viable
populations of most/all naturally occurring species
exist in natural patterns of distribution and abundance;
Sappi interpretation HCV Areas
Ecological/species considerations
- Biodiversity “hotspots”
- Rare, threatened species
- Serve as corridors
Size
- Very large areas conserving a variety of
habitats
Water conservation requirements
•Forests that provide basic ecological services in
critical situations (e.g. water quality or flow, protection
against erosion or natural disasters such as cyclones
or hurricanes, pollinators);
•Forests fundamental to meeting basic economic or
bio-physiological needs of local communities or critical
to local community cultural identity.
- Important streams for downstream users
Visual /social considerations
- Waterfalls,vleis, recreation, expansive
grasslands

Some Questions : Principle 9: Maintenance of HCV Forests
• Why single out indigenous forests?
Other important ecosystems; grasslands, wetlands
• Why the need for HCV areas?
All unplanted areas are important hence the entire
estate is an HCV area.
• Why do annual monitoring?
Too short a time period to pick up changes

Interpretations of the HCV Concept
Interpretation 1: Larger Forest Companies
• All open areas (conservation areas) are considered to be HCV
even degraded ones
• No special list of HCVs
• All areas are managed according to weeding, burning
prescriptions as set out in the Estate Conservation
Management Plan
• All indigenous forests are HCVs; some are more important than
others – these are monitored
• Results from Specialist monitoring are applied generically.

Interpretations of the HCV Concept
Interpretation 2: Smaller Forest Owners
• Members have a list of `representative ecosystems’
• Management plans are available for all areas – not specifically
HCV areas
• Areas of special conservation significance are identified by a
2 nd Party Auditor; monitored annually and farmers are
given advice on how to manage them

Interpretations of the HCV Concept- Sappi perspective
• Important areas identified and mapped
• Separate management plans for each area
Sappi HCV AREAS
Mpumalanga
Kwazulu Natal
82 80
8 SOCS 53 SOCS
74 HCVs 25 HCVs
(13) Included in HCVs 2 NHS

Interpretations of the HCV Concept- Sappi perspective
• How did Sappi identify HCV areas?
• Initiatives prior to certification:
‣Conservation projects – weeding projects along
streams, recreational sites, historical sites
‣Sites of Conservation Significance (SOCS) KZN
‣Natural Heritage Site Programme (NHS)
‣Expert opinion – added to list from State of
Environment Assessments
• Followed the Precautionary Approach – rather retain sites
than throw them out.

Examples of HCV Areas – Sappi Mpumalanga
74 HCVs
Number Habitat Former status Size
Type
12 Forest 5 previously NHS 25 – 818 ha
24 Riverine/ 2 previously NHS 16 > 100 ha
wetland
31 Grasslands 5 previously NHS 17 > 100 ha
7 Historical 1 previously NHS

High Conservation Value (HCV)
Grasslands in Mpumalanga
sappi
• Rooihoogte 3
• Lothair 5
• Hlelo 3
• Ndubazi 5
• Twello 5
• Sudwala 1
• Camelot 6
• Inkwazi 1
• Venus 1
30 sites for Veld Condition Assessment

Lothair
Highveld
Avoca
Loch Leven

Badplaas District
Suikerboschkop
Inhlanzi Natural Heritage Site
Scilla nervosa

Barberton Area
Oosterbeek
Agnes Mine area

Ngodwana Region
Taljaardsvlei
Helvetia

Monitoring of HCV Areas - Forests
‣ Species surveys,
structure & composition
‣ Spatial assessment of
condition using aerial
photography
‣ Conducted on a 3 -5
year cycle

Monitoring of HCV Areas – Rivers
‣ SASS 5 invertebrate
assessments
‣ River Health Assessments
(Sappi)
‣ Conducted annually on a 3 -
5 year cycle

Monitoring of HCV Areas – Grasslands
‣ Veld Condition assessments –
grass species composition
‣ Herb diversity assessments
(Sappi- Mpumalanga)
‣ Conducted annually on a 3 -
year cycle

Monitoring of HCV Areas- Reptile & Amphibians
mostly in HCV
areas but generally
in suitable habitats

Biodiversity Stewardship South Africa
Stewardship Categories
Contract Nature Reserve
Other initiatives
Includes declaration as a Nature Reserve (S23 of NEM: PA Act) and relevant
contractual agreement. Includes endorsement of Title Deed.
Increasing support from
Conservation Authority
Biodiversity Agreement
Contractual agreement between
Minister and landowner and/or a
contract law agreement with a
provincial conservation agency
Includes Notarial Title Deed
Protected Environment
Includes declaration and relevant
contractual agreement.
Legal agreement
No endorsement to Title Deed
Voluntary Conservation Sites
Single sites, conservancies, multiple properties, HCV sites?
Increasing commitment to
conservation

DWAF Criteria and Indicators for Sustainable
Forestry Development
Other initiatives
• The Principles, Criteria, Indicators and Standards
Framework ( National Forest Act) to be published by
the end of 2007
Ecological
Criterion 1. Natural Forests are protected
Criterion 2. Biodiversity of Natural Forest is conserved
Criterion 3. Forest Ecosystem structures are conserved and processes maintained
Social
Criterion 12. Cultural, ecological, recreational, historical, aesthetic and spiritual
sites and services are maintained.

DWAF Criteria and Indicators for Sustainable
Forestry Development (cont’d)
Who will use the Guide?
•All Managers of State Forests (both plantations & indigenous)
•Auditors of State Forests
•Private Forest Managers are encouraged to use the Guide.
•To be used for auditing purposes
• State of the Forest Reporting
Important to align standards and reporting
requirements

Grasslands Initiative – Steve Germishuizen

Some concluding remarks…..
‣ Interpretation of HCV Concept variable: Lumpers and
Splitters – open to discussion
‣ Have all Forestry Estates been properly assessed?
Broad parameters of Principle 9 need to be fine-tuned for
local conditions – thresholds set
‣ Consider the practical requirements for identifying HCV
areas (identification, documentation)
Smaller forest owners cannot afford expensive consultants
Who to fund assessments?
‣ Extending the concept to other ecosystems –
generally done; overlap between Principles 9 and 6?

Thank you