13 Percent of G-8 and China’s Timber and Wood Products Imports Could Be Illegal – WWF

In a new report, The Timber Footprint of the G8 and China, WWF reveals that the G8 countries (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, USA, and the UK) and China import two thirds of the world’s timber, pulp, paper, and wooden furniture. By assessing the countries which export timber and wood products to the G8 and China and calculating how much of these commodities is estimated to be illegal, the report suggests that 53 million cubic metres of timber and wood products imported by the G8 and China are likely to be illegal. This is more than all of the UK’s wood imports, and equivalent to a forested area the size of Belgium and the Netherlands combined. On average, 18 percent of this trade is to fulfil government procurement demands for paper, furniture and building materials used in school, hospitals, and other governmental departments.

According to the report, the governments of the G8 and China import timber from producer countries such as Brazil, Cameroon, Gabon, Liberia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Russia and Vietnam which have known problems with illegal logging. While Canada is a major producer of timber and wood-based products, it does still import some. Most of Canada’s timber and paper imports come from the USA but other products, such as veneers and furniture are purchased from tropical countries.

“As this year’s host for the G8 Summit, Canada should demonstrate leadership among the G8 nations, by establishing a responsible procurement policy that guarantees that Canadian taxpayers’ money is not supporting illegal and unsustainable logging to supply government needs for forest products,” said Steven Price, WWF-Canada’s North American Conservation Program Director.

China’s imports originate from countries such as Cameroon and the Russian Far East where 50 per cent of all exported timber is known to be illegal, and from Indonesia, where the situation is even worse.

“I am fully aware of the implications of illegal logging in the Russian Far East,” said Leonid V. Korotkov, Governor of the Amur Region (Russian Federation). “We must all act now to stop the destruction of Russia’s remaining pristine forests. This is why I fully support WWF’s Gift to the Earth initiative to enlarge the protected area system in the Amur Region by 1.4 million hectares.”

Forest resources directly contribute to the livelihoods of 90 per cent of the 1.2 billion people in the developing world that live in extreme poverty. As forest crimes lead to the loss of these resources, governments have a critical role to play in addressing poverty alleviation by combating illegal logging. The World Bank estimates the loss of revenue due to illegal logging costs governments of consumer countries $5 billion annually, with a further $10 billion lost to the economy of governments in producing countries.

WWF urges governments to adopt and implement national green procurement policies which specify that the timber they buy is from legal and well-managed sources. WWF believes that by supporting certification and labelling of forests and wood products according to the principles of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), governments can be assured they are not purchasing illegally harvested timber. Governments should also be seeking bi-lateral trade agreements with producer countries and, crucially, partnerships with the private sector through WWF’s Global Forest and Trade Network, to support responsible forestry, investments, and trade of certified timber and wood products.

“The G8 and China, who are the largest consumers of timber and wood products in the world, are not implementing policies to identify if the timber they buy is legal,” says Dr. Paul Toyne, Head of WWF-UK’s Forest Programme. “At their meeting in Canada on June 26, G8 governments should announce their commitment to a green procurement policy. This is necessary to guarantee that they are not fuelling the illegal timber trade and its numerous impacts, especially in producer countries in the Africa and Asia regions.”