NASF Resolution No. 2005-4: NASF Participation in International Forestry

NASF Resolution No. 2005-4

ORIGIN OF RESOLUTION:
NASF Sustainable Forestry Implementation Committee

ISSUE OF CONCERN:
NASF Participation in International Forestry

BACKGROUND:
Forest management issues have become global, and international cooperation and coordination is essential. Forest trade, certification, invasive species, forest health, environmental services and illegal logging are major issues that are now being discussed by a diversity of countries.

Under the system of federalism within the United States, the State Department is the only agency that can represent the country in formal international meetings. Within the State Department, the Office of Ecology and Terrestrial Conservation advances our nation’s interests on these matters in a wide variety of international organizations, institutions, treaties and other fora within and outside the United Nations system.

The USDA Forest Service, and specifically its International Program, is the key federal advisor for the State Department involving forest issues, providing technical expertise in developing formal U.S. positions for international fora, such as the United Nations Forum on Forests and the Montreal Process Criteria and Indicators for Sustainable Forest Management.

Unlike many of the nations active in the international forestry arena, state governments within the U.S. have key roles to play in domestic forest policy, as powers not specifically reserved to the national government are reserved to the states. Congress has declared that it is in the national interest for the Secretary of Agriculture to cooperate with state officials, nongovernmental organizations and the private sector in implementing federal programs affecting nonfederal forest lands.

Although the Cooperative Forestry Assistance Act of 1978 authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture to establish a variety of cooperative programs to protect and manage nonfederal forest lands, the overall legal and policy jurisdiction for forests remains with the affected states and territories, except as it relates to national and international trade and federally owned lands.

NASF’s Sustainable Forestry Implementation Committee (SFIC) is the current vehicle by which NASF makes input, recommends major decisions and represent states’ interests at the international level, especially in regard to how international decisions made by our country will affect implementation of sustainable forestry programs at the national and state levels.

RESOLUTION:
The National Association of State Foresters requests the State Department and the USDA International Forestry Program to continue including NASF as a formal member of the United States government delegation to:

1) represent the mission and values of state and private forest issues when our country’s forests are being represented at the international level;

2) share expertise in forest administration and explore linkages with international policy related issues; and

3) bring back emerging issues to the domestic forestry community.

Copies of this resolution will be sent to the Secretaries of State and Agriculture, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Environment, Chief of the Forest Service and the USFS Deputy for International Forestry.

NASF ACTION:

( X ) Approved

DATE OF ACTION:
October 5, 2005