Aug. 30, 2008
Responding to criticism that current legislation is weak and contains too many loopholes, the EC has proposed fresh regulations to combat illegal timber harvesting.
As early as November, EU Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas told green groups that he favoured introducing a binding requirement for industry to ensure that timber comes only from certified sources. France has also come on board to express support for fresh timber legislation, ENDS reported in April.
The EU's existing Flegt rules, approved in 2005, are based on partnership agreements between bloc members and timber-exporting countries, but the regulations apply to participating nations only. The EU is currently in negotiating a bilateral licensing scheme with Indonesia, a major timber exporter. It is estimated that up to 80 percent of Indonesia's timber exports are illegally harvested.
