In a recent development, China has opposed the European Union’s landmark regulation to prevent deforestation-linked commodities from entering the EU market. This update comes from GD Holz, the German timber trade association.
The EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) is designed to ensure that forest-related products that are sold in the EU market are deforestation-free. That is, producers and companies must ensure that commodities like timber, beef, palm oil, soy, coffee, cocoa and rubber come from land that wasn’t deforested after Dec. 31, 2020. They must do this by sharing geolocation coordinates that show the exact location and size of the areas where the commodities are grown.
However, China has reportedly rejected compliance with the EUDR, specifically refusing to share geolocational data, over security concerns.
“China’s laws may indeed restrict the sharing of ‘sensitive’ geolocation data with other governments. But what is deemed to be ‘sensitive’ is nebulous and ill-defined,” Julian Oram, senior policy director at Mighty Earth, a climate advocacy group, told Mongabay in an email. “Given that China supplies the EU with nearly half its timber furniture and more than 40% of all paper boxes, it would clearly be in the interests of both sides to resolve this impasse swiftly.”
Much of China’s timber comes from tropical forests, such as those in the Congo Basin. The timber gets crafted into furniture and other products in Chinese factories, which is then exported to both the EU and the U.S. The Congo Basin has the world’s second-largest expanse of rainforest after the Amazon, and is one of the largest carbon sinks in the world. But the region suffers from illegal logging and deforestation, previous investigations have found.
The EUDR was passed with strong backing from companies and NGOs. However, international political opposition has emerged against the implementation of the regulation, which is set to take effect starting Dec. 30, 2024.
China now joins the U.S. in opposing the EUDR’s traceability requirements. In March of this year, 27 U.S. senators said meeting the EUDR’s geolocation requirement would be “nearly impossible” and could limit the $3.5 billion forest product trade between the U.S. and Europe. Twenty out of 27 EU agriculture ministers, as well as countries like Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Indonesia and Malaysia, have also expressed concern about the regulation.
However, Mighty Earth’s Oram said that despite the challenges, these regulations are urgently needed.
“Right now, thousands of hectares of forests are burning all around the world, much of which is being driven by continued agricultural expansion,” he said. “There is no time to wait or delay further. The need to break the link between Europe’s consumption of agricultural products and the worldwide destruction of nature is obvious and urgent.”
Banner image: Rhett Butler/Mongabay.
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