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3. Structure of the standard The standard is set out as follows: Requirements These are the compulsory elements of the standard. Woodland management must meet all relevant requirements and certification authorities will check that each requirement is being met. ‘Requirements’ are generally stated as ‘shall’ implying they are compulsory elements of the standard. Where ‘requirements’ are stated as ‘should’ this implies that although not compulsory elements, evidence of conformance is checked by the certification authority and will contribute to overall conformance with associated requirements. Means of verification These suggest the type of objective evidence documents, actions or discussions – that the certification authority should consider in order to verify that the requirement is being met. The verifiers suggested are not exclusive or exhaustive – certification authorities will not always need to use all the verifiers suggested, and may seek verification in other ways. Guidance notes These aim to help both the woodland owner/manager and the certification authority to understand how requirements should be applied in practice. More information is provided to elaborate some requirements, the meaning of certain terms or phrases is explained, and examples of appropriate action are given. |
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