| Author (Corporate) | European Commission |
|---|---|
| Series Details | COM (2016) 74 |
| Publication Date | 18/02/2016 |
| Content Type | Policy-making, Report |
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Illegal logging is a pervasive problem of major international concern. It has a devastating impact on some of the world's most valuable remaining forests as well as on the people who live in them and who rely on the resources that forests provide. It contributes to tropical deforestation and forest degradation, which may be responsible for 7 to 14% of total CO2 emissions from human activities; it threatens biodiversity and undermines sustainable forest management and has a negative impact on poverty reduction, sustainable and inclusive economic growth and sustainable development, including by undermining the commercial viability of operators who do act in accordance with applicable legislation. In 2010 the European Union adopted Regulation (EU) No 995/2010 laying down the obligations of operators who place timber and timber products on the market (the EU Timber Regulation) as part of the implementation of the Action Plan on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT). The FLEGT is the EU policy instrument to combat the illegal logging in the world's forests and the EU Timber Regulation is the key instrument to address the problem from the demand side. The Regulation entered into force in March 2013. This report presents the first review of the Regulation conducted by the Commission. The review takes the form of an evaluation conducted in accordance with the EU 'Better Regulation' guidelines. It provides replies to five evaluation questions: relevance, effectiveness, efficiency, coherence and EU-added value. The evaluation covers the first two years of application of the Regulation. Its findings are based on the Member States' reports on the application of the Regulation submitted to the Commission, a comprehensive consultation, analysis of relevant scientific articles, a trade flow analysis and an evaluation report produced by an external consultant. This report summarises the main results of the evaluation, draws conclusions and makes recommendations for follow-up actions. It is complemented by a Staff Working Document showing the results of the evaluation in greater detail. It should be noted that only two years of implementation experience has proved to be a limiting factor for the evaluation. |
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| Source Link | http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=COM:2016:074:FIN |
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| Subject Categories | Business and Industry |
| Subject Tags | Forestry | Timber |
| Keywords | Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade [FLEGT] |
| International Organisations | European Union [EU] |
