“We must protect the ambition of this regulation, which remains one of the most powerful tools we have to curb global deforestation”, said Marie Toussaint MEP (Greens/EFA, French) on Tuesday 27 May, the day after eleven EU Member States proposed further simplifying the regulation aimed at combating ‘imported deforestation’ (see EUROPE 13648/3).
In December 2024, the EU postponed the application of the regulation by one year, from 30 December 2024 to 30 December 2025 for multinationals and to the end of June 2026 for SMEs (see EUROPE 13538/1). Be that as it may, the requirements imposed on farmers and foresters remain too burdensome, according to a dozen or so agriculture ministers.
“All EU countries are in a low risk category, with fewer obligations on companies and even less for small farmers and forest owners”, was WWF Europe’s reaction on Monday 26 May. According to Marie Toussaint, the publication on Thursday 22 May of the list of countries for the application of the regulation “was already a disappointment”, given that countries such as Brazil and Indonesia are not classified as ‘high risk’ (see EUROPE 13646/7).
By putting the idea of a ‘zero risk’ country category back on the table, these Member States “ ignore the EU’s role as a key importer of commodities linked to deforestation” but also forget that the regulation “covers not only deforestation, but also forest degradation”, which is one of the “very real threats facing Europe’s own forests”, said the WWF.
Like the WWF, the NGO Fern has identified the removal of traceability of commodities to the place of harvest as a threat to the “effectiveness of the regulation”. Without the geolocation of where goods are produced, Member States will find it difficult to “apply the legislation effectively”, said the WWF.
In addition, Marie Toussaint also found the proposal to compensate for tree felling by certified reforestation of an equivalent area in the same country “dubious”. Faced with the “open warfare” waged against this text, the MEP called for a firm stance and demanded “a serious review of the list [of country categories] as soon as updated FAO data is available”. (Original version in French by Florent Servia)