WWF: Illegal Russian Wood Destined for U.S., Europe

April 15, 2013  by in UnCategorized   

By Home Furnishings Business in Green on April 16, 2013

A World Wildlife Fund report says illegal logging destroying forests of the Russian Far East supplies wood largely to Chinese furniture and flooring manufacturers.

According to WWF-Russia,  widespread timber theft is endangering the long-term survival of the endangered Amur tiger, while providing a conduit for illegal timber to find its way into the United States, Europe and Japan. The report, Illegal Logging in the "Russian Far East: Global Demand and Taiga Destruction," synthesizes more than 10 years of on-the-ground field observations and highlights a sobering reality: Russia€™s forest sector has become deeply criminalized, with poor law enforcement, allowing illegal loggers to plunder valuable timber stocks of oak, ash, elm and linden with impunity.

€œThe scope and scale of illegal Russian logging puts U.S. companies and consumers at risk of purchasing furniture and flooring made with wood stolen from tiger habitat,€ said Linda Walker, World Wildlife Fund-US forest program manager. €œU.S. companies need to ensure that they are sourcing wood products from legal and responsible sources, or they risk violating their customers€™ trust and seriously degrading tiger habitat.€

In the report, analysis of Russian customs data reveals that in 2010, the volume of Mongolian oak logged for export was twice the amount legally authorized for harvest from the region€”meaning that at least half of oak shipped across the border to China was stolen. Further analysis of export data showed that 2010 was a mild year: in 2007 and 2008 the oak harvest was four times as large.

€œIllegal logging in the Ussuri Taiga is imperiling the long-term survival of the Amur tiger and the livelihoods of thousands of forest villagers and indigenous peoples,€ said Nikolay Shmatkov, WWF-Russia forest policy projects coordinator. €œWith minimal efforts in place to detect and prosecute illegal logging throughout the region, the sheer scale of violations has reached epidemic proportions.€

Illegal logging degrades vital habitat for Amur tigers and their prey. Scientists estimate around 450 Amur tigers remain in the wild. Over harvesting limits the supply of pine nuts and acorns--a main food source for their prey. As timber supplies dwindle, ecologically sensitive forests like wildlife reserves are increasingly threatened.

The report also finds that, although there are a few positive examples of successful Russian forest law enforcement actions, the proportion of registered illegal logging violations brought to trial is extremely low. In 2011, only 16 percent of the 691 registered cases of illegal logging in Primorsky Province were brought to trial--the lowest figure in the past 10 years.

While WWF is working in Russia to suggest measures the government can take to end illegal logging from the supply side, importing nations can help on the demand side. In particular, the report highlights the need for strengthened collaboration between Russia and China to ensure better timber tracking between the two countries.

As Russian species can be purposely mislabeled as originating from other countries, the report urges importers of Chinese or Russian hardwood furniture and flooring to confirm the species and country of wood origin. For products made with Russian oak, ash, elm or linden, companies should exclusively purchase Forest Stewardship Council-certified products to ensure they are sourcing products from legal and responsible sources.