In December last year, the European Council decided to use an agenda to strengthen efforts to protect and sustainably care for international forests – against the backdrop of climate change, but also recognizing that far too many areas are still being cleared to be converted for another Usage. The European Council is very concerned about this global development. In coordination with the supplier countries, possibilities and procedures need to be developed to promote sustainable forestry and its legal use. The Council makes some suggestions on this topic, which the European Commission should implement with the member countries – it concerns supply chains, data collection, monitoring and an intensive dialogue with partner countries.
The European Timber Trade Federation ETTF supports these Council proposals because they aim for sustainable use and can strengthen import due diligence. “We fundamentally support dialogue and active support in the supplier countries in order to ensure sustainable wood use,” said ETTF General Secretary Thomas Goebel, Berlin. The rules of due diligence are still not known to all European market participants, and implementation and monitoring at the administrative level are not at one level. This causes market distortion and does not serve the actual approach of a European regulation, namely to set the same standards in the entire internal market.
ETTF will be actively involved in the implementation of the Council decisions by the Commission at its talks in Brussels.