Indonesia, China to Cooperate in Wood Certification
From Xinhua News Agency: Jakarta - Indonesia and China will cooperate in management and certification of forest products to ensure legal wood trading between them to meet with rules on certification of origin under the U.S. Lacey Act, a media reported here Friday.
Russia: Duma Approves Bill Aimed at Preventing Illegal Timber Exports
From ITAR-TASS: Moscow - The State Duma lower house of the Russian parliament on Friday approved a bill which enables the government to cut the number of crossing points for timber exports. Lawmakers said it would help the country cut the flow of illegal timber abroad.
DNA Technology Could Help Save Endangered Forest
From the Jakarta Post: New technology is providing some hope to those battling to stop Indonesia's massively devastating and hugely costly illegal logging activity. In recent years, unlawful forest destruction has resulted in undermining the rule of law and deprived the state of substantial revenues. The World Bank estimates the illicit practice costs more than a staggering Rp 100 trillion each year.
Social Causes of Deforestation in the Amazon Rainforest
From Mongabay.com: Understanding the web of social groups involved in deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon is key to containing forest loss, argues a leading Amazon researcher writing in the journal Ecology and Society. Philip Fearnside of the National Institute for Research in the Amazon (INPA) reviews nine actors that have had significant roles in deforestation and reports differences in why they deforest, where they are active, and how they interact with each other.
Imports of Logs, Lumber and Pulp to China Increased Substantially in the 2Q/09 as the Country’s Economy Grow by Almost 8%, Reports the Wood Resources Quarterly
From Wood Resources International: Seattle, WA - The Chinese economy continues to positively surprise, with the GDP growing by 7.9% in the 2Q. Domestic consumption of forest products has increased, with new construction and remodeling being the major drivers for higher consumption of wood products.
Ghana: Forestry Commission Gets New Board
From Ghana News Agency: Accra - Alhaji Collins Dauda, Minister of Lands and Natural Resources, on Wednesday inaugurated an 11-member Board of the Forestry Commission and tasked it to preserve the nation's natural resources by dealing urgently with the activities of illegal timber operators.
Progress on Amazonian Deforestation and Land Reform
From World Resources Institute: President Lula’s targeted vetoes to controversial but landmark legislation mark significant progress towards protecting the Amazon forest. The bill considered by many to be Brazil’s most important environmental effort in years got a significant boost when President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva signed the measure while vetoing several of its most controversial measures.
US Introduces New Approach to Combat Illegal Logging
The United States has been intensifying regional dialogue with a number of Asia's wood exporting countries, including Indonesia, in an effort to combat illegal logging. Part of this dialogue took place in Jakarta on Wednesday, mainly to introduce new provisions under the recently amended US Lacey Act regulating the import and export of food products to and from the US.
Russia May Delay Timber Duties to 2011
From Forbes.com: Moscow - Russia will postpone the introduction of higher timber export duties by a year, to 2011, as the crisis has made it impossible to quickly build domestic processing facilities, a newspaper reported on Tuesday. Vedomosti business daily quoted government sources as saying the decision would be finalised in October and was aimed at protecting timber exporters during the crisis.
Indonesia: Govt to Allow Some Export of Protected Forest Wood
From The Jakarta Post: The government is considering to allow the export of S4S (surface -machined to a smooth finish on all four sides) categories of wood and logs from natural forests, currently still banned, as a way of boosting the revenue of the forestry sector, an official says.