Tropical Timber

Despite the importance of forests, deforestation still takes place at an alarming rate: annually 13 millions hectares disappear.

Latin America suffers the largest net loss, followed by Africa. This causes major problems, both locally and globally. Locally because hundreds of millions of people depend on forests for their livelihood. Globally because deforestation contributes some 30% to the total emission of the greenhouse gas CO₂.

The Netherlands is a major player in the timber sector, annually importing 7.5 million m³ timber of which some 600.000 m³ is tropical. Most of this timber is used by the construction sector. A substantial part of the timber imported by the Netherlands originates from Brazil, Peru and Bolivia, causing deforestation of the Amazon region.

At present, ten countries (including Brazil and Peru) account for some two-third of the world's 4 billion hectares forest areas. Next to supplying timber and other products, forests have several other functions, such as satisfying basic needs (mostly poor people), conservation of biodiversity, soil and water, serving as spiritual and burial grounds, and serving as carbon sinks.

 Trade in (certified) sustainably produced timber and other forest products is a mechanism proven to be effective to promote sustainable forest management. Ten percent of the world's timber production is currently certified under the FSC system. This system guarantees that the timber originates from responsible managed forests while taking into account the interests of forest dwellers. The percentage of the tropical timber imported into the Netherlands that is FSC certified has grown from 3% in 1999 to twenty at present. The Dutch actors' demand for certified timber has a direct impact on sustainable economic development in the Amazon and other main timber regions.

The greatest challenges in the timber sector include the poor match between the supply of and demand for sustainable timber, the lack of investment capital, and lack of cooperation among parties in the chain. In addition, small producers have to contend with uncertainties in respect of land and logging rights as well as laws and regulations that are at odds with their needs.

Robbert Jan Dekker, CEO of Dekker Hout about FSC and sustainable supply chains.

The Dutch Sustainable Trade Initiative's programme for timber and other forest products stimulates sustainable economic development of the Amazon region through the expansion of trade in FSC certified products, both domestic and international. Some of the expected results of the programme are:

• doubled amount of FSC certified timber from the Amazon region available on the Dutch market in 2012 (from 45.000 m³ in 2007 to 100.000 m³ in 2012)
• increased amount of FSC certified timber available on other European markets, and on domestic markets in Brazil, Peru and Bolivia
• an increase of the area of FSC certified natural forest of 3 million hectares in 2013 (1,5 million in Brazil, 1 million in Peru, and 0,5 in Bolivia), and another million hectares on its way to certification
• national FSC platforms established in Brazil, Peru and Bolivia