The European Commission will propose a delay in the implementation of a deforestation law by a year, after pressure from governments and companies concerned about the impacts of a ban on imports of products produced on deforested land.
The EU has been facing mounting pressure to postpone the legislation – hailed as a landmark in the fight against climate change – which would ban the import of goods if they were produced using land that was deforested after December 2020.
The EU's Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) was set to take effect at the end of the year, but under pressure from companies and exporting countries, the EU’s executive body said it would propose a year-long delay.
Environmentalists slammed the decision, as they consider the law as a major breakthrough in the fight to protect nature and the climate
Environmental group Mighty Earth described the proposed delay as an "act of nature vandalism", and group’s senior policy director, Julian Oram, said the delay “is like throwing a fire extinguisher out of the window of a burning building".
Greenpeace called the delay "inexcusable". EU chief Ursula von der Leyen "might as well have wielded the chainsaw herself", it added.
Pressure from industry
Citing "feedback received from international partners about their state of preparations", the Commission said it was proposing a delay to "give concerned parties additional time to prepare".
Germany became the latest country to call for a delay, in September, saying the conditions were not yet in place for the law to be efficiently applied.
Brazil, the United States and other countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America have complained the rules would increase production and export costs, especially for small companies.
Critics have also said the law is a major obstacle to concluding the Mercosur trade agreement between the EU and a South American bloc of countries, which France has repeatedly rejected.
Deforestation impacts climate
EU imports are responsible for 16 percent of global deforestation, according to WWF data, and the EU is the second largest market, after China, for the targeted products, which range from coffee, cocoa and palm oil, to rubber, timbre, printing paper and cattle.
Forests absorb carbon and are a vital element in fighting climate change. They are also critical for the survival of endangered plants and animals, such as orangutans and lowland gorillas.
EU leaders have watered down numerous environmental measures this year, particularly after farmers' protests over issues including the bloc's green policies and cheap imports.
Implementing the delay
Some EU member states had called for the law to be scaled back or suspended, saying it would harm the bloc's own farmers, who grow some products on deforested land.
Industry groups warned that the legislation, which was passed in 2023, would disrupt the European Union's supply chains and push up prices.
The delay, which need to be approved by the European Parliament and member states, would see the rules enter into force for large companies on 30 December 2025, and smaller companies would have until 30 June 2026 to comply.
Under the law, firms importing the merchandise in question to the 27-nation EU will be responsible for tracking their supply chains to prove goods did not originate from deforested zones, relying on geolocation and satellite data.
Exporting countries considered high-risk would have at least nine percent of products sent to the EU subjected to checks, with the proportion falling for lower-risk ones.
(with AFP, Reuters)
