wise use of mires and peatlands - Peatland Ecology Research Group

208 APPENDIX 5APPENDIX 5CODE OF CONDUCT WHICH MIGHT BE APPLIED BY AWHOLESALE OR RETAIL COMPANY TO ITS SUPPLIERSOF PEAT-BASED HORTICULTURAL PRODUCTSThis is an example of the type of criteria which might be applied, for instance, by a large retailchain or a large wholesaler of growing media to its suppliers of peat or peat-based growingmedia. This suggested draft code is intended to apply no matter where in the value chain thecompany applying the code is situated 127 .It is not necessary for every supplier to score 100% on each item. Allowance should also bemade for rate of improvement. For example, it might be more relevant to judge a new companyin a developing country on the basis of improvement being made rather than on a absolutebasis. It is for each wholesale or retail company to draw up its own code of conduct. Whatfollows is no more than an illustration of some of the criteria which might be applied.1. Characteristics of the countries in which any of the supplier enterprises operate.Are the supplier enterprises all from countries which:1.1 Have ratified the principal international environmental conventions1.2 Have in place comprehensive national policies relevant to mires and peatlands1.3 Have in place relevant legislation on land-use planning and environmentalprotection1.4 Have public administration functions adequate to administer this legislation1.5 Have in place legal frameworks which protect the rights of individuals andcommunities over land1.6 Take decisions at a macro-economic level regarding the exploitation of mires orpeatlands on the basis of cost-benefit analysis2. Type of mires from which all the supplying enterprises operate:2.1 Are any of the mires and peatlands from which the peat is extracted rare, and areany of their inhabiting species rare2.2 Are similar mires and peatlands to those exploited by the enterprises decreasingin abundance or not1.3 Are similar mire and/or peatland types sufficiently protected in the countries oforigin2.3 Are there no alternative sustainable resources available2.4 Do the enterprises operate on any protected sites