ISO 13391-1:2025

Overview

ISO 13391-1:2025 - Wood and wood-based products - Greenhouse gas dynamics - Part 1: Framework for value chain calculations provides a standardized framework for calculating greenhouse gas (GHG) dynamics for sets of wood and wood-based products at an organizational or aggregated (area of study) level. The standard defines the components that together describe GHG dynamics: forest management unit(s), harvested wood product(s), value chain(s), and the displacement potential from products replaced by wood-based alternatives. It sets general requirements, overarching terminology, and guidance on communicating claims and declarations.

Key technical topics and requirements

• System boundaries and methodology: Defines how to set system boundaries for value chain calculations and the general methodological approach for integrating emissions, removals and carbon pools.
• Forest management unit (FMU): Requirements for handling forest carbon balances, including cases where purchased material lacks source data.
• Harvested wood product (HWP) carbon pool: Treatment of HWP carbon including Tier 1 (simplified/stock change), Tier 2 and Tier 3 approaches for increasing methodological detail.
• Value chain emissions: Calculation requirements for emissions along the supply chain, including recycled wood-based material and allocation rules.
• End-of-life scenarios: Guidance on landfill, energy recovery, recycling, and decomposition without energy recovery.
• Displacement potential: Methods to account for potential avoided emissions when wood-based products replace alternative materials.
• Data quality and organizational requirements: Competence, control of information/documents/records, and data quality expectations for robust GHG dynamics calculations.
• Reporting, communication and claims: Specified reporting requirements, scope descriptions, how to present calculation results, and rules for claims and declarations within the value chain and to customers/consumers.
• Cross-references and tiers: Annexes include cross-references to other documents and an IPCC tier approach overview.

Practical applications and who uses it

ISO 13391-1:2025 is intended for organizations-private or public, any size or position in a value chain-seeking to quantify or communicate the climate mitigation contribution of wood-based products. Typical uses:

• Corporate GHG accounting and sustainability reporting for forestry, timber, pulp, panels and engineered wood product manufacturers
• Life cycle assessment (LCA) practitioners integrating biogenic carbon and product substitution effects
• Product environmental declarations (EPDs), procurement specifications, and eco‑labeling where claims about carbon dynamics are required
• Policymakers and certification bodies developing climate-smart forest and wood product policies or standards

Related standards

• Other parts of the ISO 13391 series (see ISO website for listings)
• Relevant IPCC guidance and national GHG inventory methods (Annex C cross-references the IPCC tier approach)

Keywords: ISO 13391-1:2025, greenhouse gas dynamics, wood and wood-based products, value chain calculations, forest carbon balance, HWP carbon pool, displacement potential, reporting, claims.