Two questions
1) The LEED reference guide states that “ Each vendor invoice must conform to the following requirements
a) Each wood product must be identified on a line item basis
b) FSC products must be identified as such on a line item basis”
Can someone please expound on the "line item basis" phrase as it is unclear to me, and what is the difference between a and b.
2) a) Can someone explain to me in very simple terms the concept that revolves around COC as I can’t seem to fully comprehend it .
b) It mentions that all vendors must have a COC, and they must also be certified by an FSC accreditor. How do I know for a fact that this vendor is certified by a legitimate FSC accreditor? And who certifies an FSC accreditor, and how do I know my vendor’s COC is valid? And what exactly does COC mean? I know it stands for chain of custody, but what exactly does that mean ?
c) Can two different vendors have the same COC? Can the manufacturer of a certain product that supplies his product to VENDOR A have the same COC as VENDOR A?
d) It says in the LEED reference guide that “Forest management certification is awarded to responsible forest managers after their operations successfully complete audits of forestry practices and plans” so if I’m understanding this correctly - there is no such thing as certified forests. Am I right? Only managers get certified? How do I assure when my vendor submits his FSC product coupled with his COC that his product came from a forest where it’s manager is certified? Shouldn’t forests be certified? And what exactly does it mean when a manager is certified? And why is FSC more expensive than your regular wood? What’s so special about FSC? What’s so unique about FSC ? Can someone please explain this whole FSC concept to me as I can’t seem to wrap my head around it.
Jon Clifford
LEED-AP BD+CGREENSQUARE
LEEDuser Expert
327 thumbs up
May 21, 2014 - 11:21 am
Response to Question 1: Imagine that a Contractor places an order at a lumberyard for the following materials:
a) a few sheets of non-FSC NAUF plywood,
b) a truckload of FSC-Certified lumber, &
c) a crate of nails [non-wood].
Items a & b match a & b from your question. Item c doesn't match either, so it is a separate line item. As long as the invoice for this order includes a bill-of-materials that itemizes costs for each material (like a grocery receipt), it’s good.
An invoice that omits the bill-of-materials or fails to itemize costs is unacceptable.
Since one can only purchase FSC-Certified products from an FSC-Certified vendor, the invoice would also include the lumberyard’s COC Certificate number. Item b would also indicate whether the product is “FSC-Pure”, “FSC-Mixed Credit”, or “FSC-Mixed ##%”. An FSC-Certified vendor should already know these invoicing requirements, and their invoices should automatically conform.
For question 2, see
https://us.fsc.org/download.coc-basics.129.pdf.