Category: Publications

Practical Guide to Conducting Due Diligence of Tropical Timber Products – Republic of Congo

The objective of this practical guide is to summarise the main documents that need to be collected, and how to interpret them, in order to conduct due diligence of timber consignments to be imported from the Republic of Congo into the US and European markets. It also provides a summary of the main risks associated with timber legality that the due diligence must address, for the Republic of Congo.

The guide, initially published in January 2021, has been updated with information about the Open Timber Portal (OTP), a free online platform designed by the World Resources Institute. The goal of the OTP, as that of BVRio’s Due Diligence guides, is to incentivise legality in the timber sector, by facilitating access to information.

鲜为人知的树种: 加纳木材资源的可持续利用 Lesser-known and lesser-used species booklet

CHINESE VERSION Lesser-known and lesser-used species refer in this booklet to under-utilised timber species from Ghana that have similar properties to other popular species.

There are more than 50,000 species of timber in the world, but only a small proportion of these are used commercially. Currently, Ghana has nearly 90 species that are regularly exploited and traded as timber. Lesser-known & lesser-used species can have similar and even better performance for some specific end-uses; they can also have a more distinctive and unique appearance compared to more popular ones. Using these species is not only a good business decision but also has the potential to improve livelihoods and protect biodiversity.

Programa Floresta+ and Voluntary Carbon Markets

Voluntary transactions have the potential to help nations not only achieve but surpass their Paris agreement targets, according to new analysis compiled by international non-profit BVRio and the Brazilian REDD+ Alliance. The analysis also focuses on the positive potential the new Brazilian Programme Floresta+ has.

Practical Guide to Conducting Due Diligence of Tropical Timber Products – Peru

The guide is part of the series that was first launched in 2017 with guides profiling Brazil and Ghana. The series of guides summarises the main documents that evidence legality, and how to interpret them for each country, in order for buyers to conduct document-based due diligence of timber consignments to be imported into the US and European markets.

The guide profiling Peru includes a brief description of the legality framework and the organisations involved in the forest and timber sector. It also includes a summary of the main documents along the supply chain and the main risks regarding illegality in the country, and shows real samples of these documents and how to read them, flagging what to be aware of when reviewing them.

Guía práctica para realizar diligencia debida de productos de madera tropical – Perú (Spanish)

La guía forma parte de la serie que se lanzó por primera vez en 2017 con guías que describen el Brasil y Ghana. En la serie de guías se resumen los principales documentos que prueban la legalidad, y cómo interpretarlos para cada país, a fin de que los compradores puedan realizar una diligencia debida basada en documentos de los envíos de madera que se van a importar a los mercados de los Estados Unidos y Europa. También brinda un resumen de los principales riesgos asociados a la legalidad de la madera que la diligencia debida debe tomar en cuenta, para cada país en particular.

Lesser-Known & Lesser-Used Timber Species

Lesser-known and lesser-used species refer in this booklet to under-utilised timber species from Ghana that have similar properties to other popular species.

There are more than 50,000 species of timber in the world, but only a small proportion of these are used commercially. Currently, Ghana has nearly 90 species that are regularly exploited and traded as timber. Lesser-known & lesser-used species can have similar and even better performance for some specific end-uses; they can also have a more distinctive and unique appearance compared to more popular ones. Using these species is not only a good business decision but also has the potential to improve livelihoods and protect biodiversity.

CCM Guidance note 2: Additionality and Positive Lists

The Circular Credits Mechanism (CCM) is guided by a set of Principles & Criteria to ensure the environmental and social integrity of the credits issued and the waste management systems of its users. An important factor affecting the environmental integrity of projects is the concept of is additionality. At the same time, the application of additionality requirements and analyses needs to be contextualised in order to yield sound outcomes.

This note discusses the concept and application of additionality to circular action projects.

CCM Guidance note 1: No Double-Counting and No Free -Riding

This note aims to explain the concept and objective of the principles; No Double-Counting and No Free-Riding, as originally conceived by the CCM, and trigger a discussion related to their appropriateness and interpretation to real life situations.

CCM Implementation Guidelines and Operational Procedures

This document provides information on how to apply the Circular Action Hub’s Principles and Criteria for Circular Credit Mechanism (CCM) projects involving the recovery and recycling of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW).

The Implementation Guidelines aim to assist users in the application of the Principles & Criteria to MSW projects. Following the “Learning by doing” principle, additional guidance documents will be provided as more projects are developed and more information is gathered about different approaches and different circumstances, to ensure a continuous improvement of the CAH’s Principles & Criteria and its guidelines.

The Operational Procedures describe the process to register and implement CCM projects, as well as the internal governance procedures to analyse and monitor these projects.

Circular Action Hub and Circular Credits Mechanism (CCM) Principles & Criteria

This document describes the Principles & Criteria of the Circular Action Hub and its Circular Credits Mechanism for projects involved in the recovery and recycling of Municipal Solid Waste projects.

There are seven Principles and Criteria that outline the basic philosophy of the Hub and the mechanism for all sorts of projects. Their objective is to provide the rationale behind the aims, concepts, scope, and eligibility for projects willing to participate in the Hub and/or issue Circular Credits (CCs).

Specific guidance on the implementation of the Principles & Criteria for specific projects can be found in the Implementation Guidelines and Operational Procedures for different sectoral scopes.