EU Timber regulations: one year on
Hamburg, Germany, 27th March 2014—A workshop on the EU Timber Regulation, hosted by the German Ministry of Environment, took place earlier this month on 18–19th March. The workshop was held to mark one year of the coming into force of the EU Timber Regulation (EUTR) (March 2013) and the establishment of the Thünen Centre of Competence on the Origin of Timber.
The workshop was targeted at the private sector, and provided a forum for an exchange of dialogue and experiences between participants. In total over 130 people participated, representing a broad range of stakeholders including government authorities, private sector, academia, monitoring organizations, certification bodies and non-governmental organizations.
The aim of the workshop was to share experiences on the practical implementation of the EUTR and provide support for its implementation. Support articulated included the timber identification expertise of the Thünen Centre and the provision of guidance by monitoring organizations. TRAFFIC was invited to discuss the availability of tools to support “due diligence” requirements, including the TRAFFIC/GFTN legality framework and reports produced under the EU-funded project Supporting the implementation of EU FLEGT Action Plan in South America.
