BRUSSELS, Dec 15 (Reuters) - European Union ministers on Tuesday rejected a proposal to ban the import of illegal timber and timber products, approving a series of less stringent measures.
EU agriculture ministers, meeting in Brussels, rejected an outright ban as favoured by Britain, Spain and the Netherlands and agreed instead on measures including stricter rules on the certification of timber entering the EU... [Continue]
Cornelia Behm, Sprecherin für Agrar- und Waldpolitik von Bündnis 90/Die Grünen beklagt die Unentschlossenheit der Bundesregierung in Sachen Illegaler Holzhandel. Während die Regierung einerseits ihre Unzufriedenheit mit dem EU-Vorschlag für Maßnahmen gegen den Holzhandel mit illegalen Waren erkennen läßt, kann sie sich andererseits aus unerklärlichen Gründen nicht aufraffen, selbst aktiv zu werden... [Continue]
LUXEMBOURG - EU farm ministers on Monday broadly welcomed plans to crack down on the lucrative illegal timber trade by making exporters obtain licences to prove their wood does not come from endangered rainforests.
Ministers will negotiate the proposals in detail over the next few months, after a discussion in which some voiced concern over the plan's costs for business and others said the scheme was long overdue... [Continue]
Pressemitteilung vom 22.10.2008
München - Pro REGENWALD wirft Bundesumweltminister Sigmar Gabriel (SPD) in einem offenen Brief Heuchelei vor. In seiner Enttäuschung über die kürzlich vorgestellten Vorschläge der Europäischen Kommission zur Bestrafung illegalen Holzhandels lenkt er vom jahrelangen Versagen der Bundesregierung ab, selbst gegen den illegalen Holzeinschlag und -handel tätig zu werden... [Continue]
Washington DC, USA ' Importers of wood products may want to keep an eye on newly passed regulations in last months farm bill. New amendments added to the Lacey Act aim to cut down on illegal logging.
Depending on how strongly the new provisions are enforced, the law could have implications for the furniture industrys supply chain.
The legislation creates a requirement for importers to declare the species and country of origin of any plant or plant product, including wood... [Continue]
Vietnamese furniture exporters, who are struggling to source legally logged timber, learnt about some common international laws on the issue at a seminar yesterday.
The half-day event, jointly organised by the HCM City Handicrafts and Wood Industry Association (Hawa) and Swiss-based certifier SGS group, addressed furniture exporters' concerns about the legality and traceability of timber, which have increasingly been demanded by European and American clients... [Continue]
Fish and timber are natural resources often not managed in a sustainable way in West Africa due to inadequate EU policies, says a report adopted by the European Parliament. The own initiative report adopted with 559 votes in favour 11 against and 17 abstentions is part of a periodic review of EU policies.
The report draws on the role of the EP Committee on Development to assess how EU policies affect development in a new power granted by the Development Cooperation Instrument (DCI) that entered into in force December 2006... [Continue]
