Consultancy: Development of a Guideline for Sanitary Felling

TERMS OF REFERENCE

1. 1.     Goal of the Service

WWF Sweden aims to hire a consultant to develop a practical guidance that will support the implementation of effective control measures and audits to identify and prevent the incidence and risk of sanitary felling used to cover illegal logging. The guidance will be developed through testing in Ukraine, but the study aims for this document to be, if possible, applicable in different countries.

1. 2.     Background information

Sanitary felling is a forest operation that aims to improve the stand's condition by taking away infected, damaged, dead and perishing trees and where economic benefits are not the prime objective.

Under the right condition and appropriate legal framework, sanitary felling can preserve the health of a forest stand and contribute to long term responsible economic, social, and environmental management of a forest. For instance, sanitary felling has been used to mitigate the spreading of diseases, particularly outbreaks of bark beetles, that are becoming more common due to climate change.

However, sanitary logging is sometimes misused as coverage for commercial and illegal activities. Cases have been reported over the years in several countries in Central and Eastern Europe, such as Bulgaria Czech Republic, Romania, Slovakia, and Ukraine. Logging may happen in areas different from those needed, also the intensity of harvesting may be much higher than needed, or tree selection may focus on quality logged timber instead of real sanitary purpose.

1. 3.     Methodology and activities

The study will be based on desk review and field visit in forest management units (FMU) located in Ukraine. In particular, it is expected that:

-        The consultant will collect data and report on sanitary felling and linked cases of illegal logging in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), specifically Ukraine, in 2018-2019.

-        The consultant will collect data and reports on illegal logging in CEE, especially in Ukraine in 2018-2019.

-        The consultant will analyse links between sanitary felling and illegal logging and open up different approaches based on diverse definitions and methods

-        The consultant will conduct a review of the current existing legal requirements and guidance in Ukraine and assess gaps in practices and legislation and compare the situation in Ukraine with another country, if this is beneficial for the study.

-        The consultant will conduct interviews and consultations with stakeholders in Ukraine and abroad such as government authorities, specialized forest protection organizations and enterprises,  NGOs, academic researches, FSC, Assurance Services International (ASI), auditors and certification bodies, and FMUs to define the challenges and current best practices and collect suggestions on how to detect signs of applicable law infringements, assessment of risk and improve due diligence as well as audit processes.

-        The consultant will develop a draft guidance to support FSC audit processes and due diligence systems that will be reviewed by WWF and key stakeholders (such as FSC, Mondi and ASI). The guidance will provide measures for both field visit and documentation review.

-        The Guidance should be applicable for FSC-STD-UKR-01-2019 V 1-0 and usable for due diligence systems of the operators.

-        The consultant will conduct a field visit to test the effectiveness and practical implementation of the draft guidance and preferably test it during an audit.

NOTE¹: the site for the field visit will be decided in cooperation with WWF and other relevant stakeholders such as FSC and ASI

-        The consultant will edit and finalize the guidance based on the inputs from the field visit.

-        The consultant will participate and present the results in consultations conducted by WWF and key stakeholders and integrate these inputs in the final guidance.

-        The consultant will provide final guidance that includes at least:

• verifiable matrix of the legal procedures of appointing the sanitary felling;
• signs of potential deviation from applicable law and standard requirements;
• recommendations about how to identify possible violations both during field visit and during documents review
• risk assessment of illegal logging;
• designation the CARs and mitigation measures;
• proposal for due diligence methodology and process.

1. 4.     Deliverables

-        List of literature and documents used

-        List of questions and interviewees, including photos and videos, when applicable

-        Pre-field test guidance with a summary of the field visit

-        Post-field test guidance with a summary of the consultation

-        An online presentation to introduce the findings

-        Final guidance both in appropriate local language and English[1]

1. 5.     Reporting

• WWF staff and the consultant will arrange planning and evaluation calls, depending on the needs
• WWF staff, with inputs from key stakeholders (such as FSC, Mondi and ASI), will provide feedback on the list of interviewees and questions.
• WWF staff and key interested stakeholders will join some interviews, if possible, and the field visit.
• WWF, with inputs from key stakeholders (such as FSC, Mondi and ASI), will review the draft guidance and provide comments
• WWF will share the draft guidance with key stakeholders for consultation, for feedback
• WWF, based on the feedback received, will provide final inputs to the guidance.
• The consultant will keep the Senior Pulp, Paper, and Packaging Advisor, other WWF staff involved, informed on the status of deliverables and timely inform WWF on any issues/delays/challenges related to the tasks.
• The consultant and WWF will discuss a possible extension of the contract if needed.

1. 6.     Qualifications

-        At least 7 years of experience in forestry (particularly forest entomology and phytopathology), legality linked to sanitary felling or legality check and control measures, and audits.

-        Experience in development of technical guidance, particularly on timber legality

-        Proven experience in issues linked to sanitary felling in particular forest entomology and phytopathology evaluation.

-        Fluent in Ukrainian and Russian, at least intermediate level of English

-        Proven experience in research on similar topics and network with relevant stakeholders in Ukraine, experience on the issue in another European country would be considered an advantage

-        Good presentation, writing, and communication skills, organized and able to handle multiple deadlines under minimal supervision and good time management skills.

1. 7.     Application instructions

Companies (including freelancers) should submit proposals to Mauro Ciriminna, mauro.ciriminna@wwf.se and copying Andriy Plyha, aplyha@wwf.ua

Proposals should include a one-page cover email stating relevant expertise, résumé (maximum 3 pages), and a brief proposal including timeline and a budget by the 09^th of April 2020. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, so early applicants are welcomed.

1. 8.     Payment

The payment and disbursement will follow WWF procedures and will be indicated in the contract