The HCV Process

The HCV approach provides a systematic basis for identifying critical conservation values – both social and environmental – referred to as High Conservation Values (HCVs) and for planning ecosystem management in order to ensure that these HCVs are maintained or enhanced. The High Conservation Value area is the area of habitat which needs to be managed in order to protect the values.

The HCV concept was initially developed by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), which  identified six generic HCVs that a forest may contain or maintain. The generic values were elaborated in the High Conservation Value Forest (HCVF) Toolkit, developed by ProForest, which is a set of global guidelines on how to use the high conservation values in the context of forest management. However, the principles of HCV are equally applicable to all kinds of habitats and ecosystems.

The HCV process comprises three key steps

1.      Identify the HCVs which are present: the presence or absence of each HCV is determined based on an analysis of existing information and the collection of additional information where necessary to fill gaps.

2.      Identify the HCV area and how it must be managed: the High Conservation Value area is the area of habitat which must be appropriately managed in order to maintain or enhance the identified values. Identifying an HCV area and its management regime involves:

   - Investigating the existing and potential future threats to the high conservation values identified. These may be threats from proposed management activities, such as logging operations or plantation establishment, or from external activities such as hunting of wildlife, illegal logging or encroachment for agriculture. 

   - Establishing both the location and the management requirements for the HCV area with the aim of ensuring that the HCVs identified are maintained or enhanced. This can include delineating areas which need total protection and identifying areas which can be used for production provided that management is undertaken in a way consistent with maintaining or enhancing HCVs.

3.      Establish an appropriate monitoring regime to ensure that the management practices are effective in their aim of maintaining or enhancing the HCVs. The monitoring regime needs to translate the strategic objectives of the management regime into operational objectives. Appropriate indicators must be chosen to assess the status of the HCVs, and thresholds for action must be established to ensure that the HCVs are maintained or enhanced.

In all cases, the assessment process to be followed should be:

·         Knowledge-based, incorporating and using all relevant scientific data and local knowledge. Where significant gaps in existing information are identified, data should be collected, and the precautionary approach, commensurate with the degree of risk, should be followed.

·         Participatory and inclusive, ensuring that relevant stakeholders are consulted and their views or the information they provide is incorporated into the process and that appropriate existing initiatives are engaged wherever possible.

·         Open and transparent including peer reviews of findings and public reporting of outcomes.