Progress Report 2007-2008 - Department of Environment and ...
Progress Report 2007-2008 - Department of Environment and ...
Progress Report 2007-2008 - Department of Environment and ...
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90<br />
Due date Region FA section Milestone <strong>Progress</strong><br />
<strong>Environment</strong>al Management System<br />
2001 1 April<br />
UNE,<br />
LNE,<br />
Eden<br />
2.1.1<br />
Att. 3<br />
Att. 4<br />
Preparation <strong>of</strong> SFNSW EMS – Native Forest<br />
Management System.<br />
MANAGING THE FORESTS<br />
Complete<br />
The Forests NSW EMS assists in continuous improvement <strong>of</strong> environmental management in native <strong>and</strong> planted forests. The EMS is a<br />
comprehensive planning, assessment, implementation, monitoring, auditing <strong>and</strong> reporting system.<br />
Initially Forests NSW placed a draft Native Forest Management System on public display in September 2000 with draft Regional<br />
ESFM plans. Forests NSW Native Forest Management System (NFMS) was renamed the Native Forest <strong>Environment</strong>al Management<br />
System (NFEMS) to better highlight the intent <strong>of</strong> the system. Following the public display <strong>of</strong> the Native Forest Strategic Framework in<br />
September 2000 <strong>and</strong> a gap analysis by an external ISO 14001 certification company, the NFEMS was distributed to all Native Forests<br />
regions. Simulated (training) EMS audits followed; audit outcomes were used to focus further development work on continuous<br />
improvement <strong>of</strong> the NFEMS.<br />
Although the intention was to develop the EMS for Native Forest only, Forests NSW included the planted estate. During 2003–2004 a<br />
draft procedures EMS manual was developed, specifically addressing native forest issues <strong>and</strong> considered options for its<br />
appropriateness for planted forests.<br />
In 2004–2005, senior management <strong>of</strong> Forests NSW approved an audit program for native forest regions to assess the workings <strong>of</strong> its<br />
EMSs. The program did not include operational health <strong>and</strong> safety audits. Auditing in plantation areas was confined to compliance with<br />
the EPL <strong>and</strong> Codes <strong>of</strong> Practice during this period.<br />
During 2005–2006, Forest NSW completed its review <strong>and</strong> implemented recommendations from the internal audits that were made in<br />
2004–2005. The findings <strong>of</strong> these reports formed the basis for the external verifiers to assess Forests NSW EMS systems.<br />
Forest NSW finalised a number <strong>of</strong> corporate systems <strong>and</strong> management reviews to obtain its external accreditation in ISO 14001<br />
(EMS) in June 2006 for planted <strong>and</strong> native forests. The ISO 14001 accreditation covers both native <strong>and</strong> plantation operations.<br />
It has taken longer than expected to complete the EMS because <strong>of</strong> the size <strong>of</strong> the task. A typical EMS addresses potential<br />
environmental impacts caused by corporate business activities, usually at a limited number <strong>of</strong> sites, with few variables between sites.<br />
Simply creating a typical EMS framework within the Forests NSW business would not achieve ISO14001 nor forest agreement<br />
objectives owing to the large <strong>and</strong> diverse nature <strong>of</strong> Forests NSW as an organisation <strong>and</strong> its activities. Forests NSW has had to<br />
implement an EMS across three operational divisions, including nine management regions <strong>and</strong> 12 <strong>of</strong>fices, to address activities<br />
relevant to forest management planning, harvesting, monitoring <strong>and</strong> reporting for over 2 million ha <strong>of</strong> native forest <strong>and</strong> half a million ha<br />
<strong>of</strong> planted forest estate throughout NSW.<br />
In December 2006, Forests NSW was certified as compliant with the Australian Forestry St<strong>and</strong>ard (AFS) (AS 4708 (Int)–2003) by NCS<br />
International (NCSI). The AFS complements the pre-existing regulatory structure <strong>and</strong> EMS by providing an independent perspective.<br />
Regular external audits carried out by NCSI assess not only Forests NSW management systems <strong>and</strong> compliance with applicable<br />
licences, but also its commitment to sustainable timber supply, efficient resource use, stakeholder involvement, staff training, carbon<br />
sequestration, <strong>and</strong> other ESFM aspects. Regular assessment <strong>and</strong> guidance by the AFS has helped Forests NSW to continually<br />
improve its practices <strong>and</strong> allowed the organisation to demonstrate it is a responsible forest custodian.<br />
NSW FOREST AGREEMENTS AND INTEGRATED FORESTRY OPERATIONS APPROVALS