VPA's

Eurobarometer 2012 on the EU Timber Regulation (EU TR)

The Irish government appears to be fully supportive of the EU FLEGT Action Plan but appears to be doing very little proactively to help it succeed. Ireland is still failing the forests

Ireland has improved its performance somewhat, compared to 2007 (see below). A degree of inter-departmental collaboration is taking place, and the government has indicated its readiness to accept FLEGT-licensed timber once it becomes available. There's no indication of a public procurement policy for sustainable / legal timber products. The country is not involved with Voluntary Partnership Agreements (VPAs)-please see video to right. Work is ongoing on the implementation of the EU Timber Regulation which will come in to force in March 2013.

ONLY   to enforcement.
Are you ready?

Results for 2012 here.....

IMPORTANT INFORMATION
IF YOUR BUSINESS INVOLVES TIMBER OR PRODUCTS MADE FROM TIMBER, WHETHER IMPORTED OR DOMESTICALLY PRODUCED
THE NEW EU TIMBER REGULATION WILL AFFECT YOU !
 

See WORD document below: What's covered under the new EU Timber Regulation?

Please see video above:

Dr. Mary Hobley presenting at the Chatham House Illegal Logging Update and Stakeholder consultation Number 19, February 2012.

The video captures highlights from the study done by Dr. Mary Hobley and Dr. Marlène Buchy, which was commissioned by the EU FLEGT Facility. It brings to light the multidimensionality of poverty and lists the subsequent conditions for poverty reduction in forests. The researchers found that the FLEGT Voluntary Partnership Agreement (VPA) processes and content include elements that make it possible to address poverty.

Dr. Hobley takes us through the ways these elements can be turned into social safeguards and concludes that VPAs are posing an exciting opportunity -- they bring together the right ingredients for alleviating poverty and securing forest people's livelihoods.

Produced by the European Forest Institute's EU FLEGT Facility - funded by the European Union, the Governments of Finland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom.

www.euflegt.efi.int

This film has been produced with the assistance of the EU. The contents of this film are the sole responsibility of the authors and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the EU. 

UPDATES here...

EU (2007) Barometer on illegal-logging 

It also appears to have a limited awareness of what the Action Plan actually entails. This is the first year that the Irish government has taken part in the Government Barometer Survey (in 2006, Ireland was the only EU Member State ever to have declined to participate).

Ireland imports an estimated 1,992 million Euros of wood-based products. Assuming importers in Ireland do not actively seek to procure legal wood-based products, around 11% of this trade is thought to be illegal, translating to a per capita import value of approximately €27.

Ireland's almost complete lack of progress (apart from recognising the importance of tackling illegal logging within the EU) is therefore surprising. Only the Czech Republic scored as low as Ireland and the former has only a very limited need for imported wood and has only recently joined the EU. 

Whats covered under the new EU Timber Regulation
	informationflyerseptember2011190911.doc (35.5 KB)