According to WWF - World Wide Fund for Nature, every year, 27 million³ of illegal wood are brought into EU territory.
This amount represents a quarter of the total European imports.
The top exporters of illegal wood are Russia - 10.4 mill. m³, Indonezia, China, Congo and Gabon.
WWF states that the fight against illegal cuttings is aggravated by the fact that the wood is also being exported as finished products (paper, furniture, pallets).
Thus, in France, pallets are being exported, with no mention of their source of origin. This country currently occupies the 6th place in the top of illegal wood exporters.
Consequently, WWF asks French authorities to restructure the wood verifying system. WWF has elaborated series of 10 actions meant to roughen the legislative aspects in this sector. These actions have been included in the report forwarded to the Environment Comission of the European Parliament.
According to a poll including 14 European countries, 92% of the interviewed persons demand an European law which would guarantee the legal exploitation of wood.
Source: http://www.ecomagazin.ro |
