EU prohibits importing wood, soy or rubber if it causes deforestation in the country of origin

The European Parliament today approved a pioneering law to prevent imports into the European Union of certain raw materials and derivative products such as palm oil, beef, soybeans, coffee, rubber, wood or chocolate from causing deforestation in third countries.

“The damage from deforestation goes beyond the loss of trees: it affects entire ecosystems, disrupts the water cycle, contributes to climate change, and threatens the livelihoods of millions of people.”, declared the commissioner of Environment, Virginius SinkeviciusAfter the eurochamber validate the regulation by 552 votes in favor, 44 against and 43 abstentions.

The new regulations, which still need to be formally ratified by the Council of the EUaims to address the problem of the loss of forest masses, since every year 10 million hectares of forests are destroyed in the world, according to UN data, which is equivalent to a territory larger than Portugal.

It is estimated that between 1990 and 2020 the planet has lost a forest area equivalent to the territory occupied by the European Union, and consumption within the EU it is responsible for 10% of this form of environmental degradation that implies loss of biodiversity and accelerates the climate crisis, according to data from the Council of the EU.

The new community law covers the cattlecocoa, coffee, Palm oilsoybeans, wood and the Rubberincluding products that contain, have been fed with or have been made with them, such as leather, chocolate or furniture, as well as charcoal, printed paper products and a series of derivatives of palm oil.

Tracking, controls and sanctions

Companies that import these materials and derived products into the European Union will have to trace their origin and issue a due diligence declaration that guarantees that they have not caused deforestation in their places of origin with respect to the existing values ​​as of December 31, 2020. .

This includes not only deforestation, but also forest degradation that entails the transformation of primary forests into planted forests.

Companies will have to provide the competent authorities in the EU with information about their imports, such as the geolocation coordinates of production, and will be subject to inspections and controls that may range from DNA analysis to satellite surveillance.

After 18 months from the entry into force of the regulation, towards the end of 2024, the Commission will prepare a classification of the countries of origin of the products according to their low, medium or high risk, which will determine the frequency of the controls.

In the case of high-risk countries, EU Member States will have the obligation to verify 9% of imports.

Penalties for non-compliance may reach up to 4% of the total turnover in the EU of companies that do not comply with the regulations.

Importers will also have to ensure that in the process of obtaining and preparing these raw materials and derived products, human rights and the rights of indigenous peoples are respected.

One year after the entry into force of the regulation, at the latest, the European Commission will assess whether the regulation should also be extended to other forested lands with less tree density (such as El Cerrado in Brazil or El Chaco in Argentina).

And within two years Brussels will study whether it should be extended to other ecosystems and raw materials such as corn or pork, goat, sheep and poultry meat.

international scene

The regulations could affect the development of the trade agreement between the EU and the mercosur (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) signed in 2019 after twenty years of negotiation but blocked without yet being ratified.

France, one of the great agricultural powers of the EU and traditionally opposed to the agreement, fears that the increase in exchanges with those Latin American countries that export agricultural products will generate more deforestation, as predicted by various environmental platforms.

According to the environmental NGO greenpeaceIf China, India, the United States and Japan approve measures similar to the regulations adopted by the EU, 75% of global deforestation could be ended.

Source: EFE