Four firms to issue timber ecolabeling

JAKARTA (JP): Four standard certification service companies won the right to issue ecolabeling for timber companies on Monday from the Indonesian Ecolabeling Foundation (LEI).

The four -- PT TUV International Indonesia (a German joint venture company), PT SGS International Certification Services Indonesia (Swiss joint venture), PT Superintending Company of Indonesia or Sucofindo and PT Mutuagung Lestari -- were selected from 10 applicants for the right to issue the labels.

LEI executive director Dradjad Wibowo, who made the announcement, said certification was needed for Indonesian timber products bound for Europe and United States as of 2002.

"An ecolabeling certification will be given to timber companies which have met the standards, including conducting sustainable forest management," Dradjad said.

LEI chairman Emil Salim outlined three criteria timber companies have to meet to secure the certificates: sustainable forest management, promote the economic and social life of people living around their concessions and maintain their productivity.

LEI is working in cooperation with the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), an international organization which gives accreditation to ecolabeling certification institutions around the world, in approving the ecolabeling companies.

The accreditation for the four companies would be effective until 2002, Emil said. "We are going to review it after that."

Mutuagung Lestari, which has issued industrial standard certification, ISO-14000s, hoped to start issuing certificates as soon as possible, its president, Arifin Lambaga, said.

Although an ecolabeling certificate would be valid for five years, it would be reevaluated every semester, Arifin said.

A timber company, he added, would have to spend Rp 250 million (US$30,000) for every 100 hectares of forest it managed in order to obtain the ecolabel certificate.

Sucofindo, meanwhile, said it would start issuing ecolabel certificates in October.

President Didie B. Tedjosumirat said Sucofindo had already prepared nine professional experts to audit timber companies which had registered with the company. (02)