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The United States, the world’s largest consumer of wood products, is a central player in driving the trade in illegally sourced timber. A 2007 analysis by EIA of the sector estimated that U.S. consumption of high-risk timber and wood products (not including pulp and paper) was as high as 10% of annual wood imports – $3.8 billion in 2006.
Until May 2008, without laws to prevent the importation or sale of illegal wood, even the most blatantly stolen timber was legal upon reaching American shores. Companies along the supply chain have failed to ask questions about the origins of the wood they buy because they haven’t had to do so. The problem has been so pervasive that the U.S. Capitol building itself came close to hanging Honduran mahogany doors at high risk of illegal origin.
The passage and implementation of the Lacey Act Amendment will now create dramatic change in the essentially unregulated global timber industry, leading to a systemic shift in the practices of importers, manufacturers, and timber companies.
The Lacey Act, passed in 1900, is one of the United States’ primary tools for prohibiting interstate and international trafficking in protected wildlife species. The Act is enforced primarily by the Fish and Wildlife Service, the Department of Agriculture’s Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), and U.S. customs.
The Lacey Act's clear prohibitions and strong penalties have long caused legal experts to consider it “a potent weapon in the fight against widespread and highly profitable illegal wildlife traffic.”
The new ban amends a long-standing wildlife trafficking statute, the Lacey Act, to prohibit the commerce of plants and derivative products – including all timber and wood products – that were illegally taken or traded. It will also increase transparency and focus law enforcement efforts by requiring importers to declare the species, country of origin, and other related information.
The ban was introduced in the House of Representatives by Congressmen Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Jerry Weller (R-IL), and Robert Wexler (D-FL) on March 13, 2007, and then in the Senate by Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Lamar Alexander (R-TN) on August 1. It drew unanimous support from the House Committee on Natural Resources in October 2007 , where EIA was invited to give expert testimony on the impacts of illegal logging on forests and people. The Senate passed the amendment unanimously in December 2007 and it became law in May 2008.
[ Click here for a broader explanation of how the amended Lacey Act might be enforced ]
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 Media: Watch EIA Executive Director, Alexander von Bismarck, give testimony on the Legal Timber Protection Act before the House Committee on Natural Resources, Subcommittee on Fisheries, Wildlife, and Oceans
[watch video clip] |
Read EIA's written testimony on the Legal Timber Protection Act.
Read other statements and testimonies on the Legal Timber Protection Act submitted by groups that gave oral testimony at the hearing, including from Congressman Earl Blumenauer, the American Forest & Paper Association, the Hardwood Federation, and the Department of Justice.
[ read more ]
Read other submitted supporting testimonies: American Forest & Paper Association • Defenders of Wildlife • Dr. James Grogan of Yale University School of Forestry and Environmental Studies • Global Witness • Hardwood Federation • Natural Resources Defense Council • World Wildlife Fund • The Honorable Barry Gardiner, MP, British Parliament
Read Senator Ron Wyden's (D-OR) speech on August 1, 2007 introducing the Combat Illegal Logging Act on the Floor of the U.S. Senate.
The Lacey Act: America's Premier Weapon in the Fight Against Unlawful Wildlife Trafficking. Read Department of Justice attorney Bob Anderson's legal review of Lacey Act case law.
The Lacey Act uses the violation of an underlying federal, state, or foreign law to ‘trigger’ a violation of Lacey itself. Including plants under the Act’s provisions will prohibit the commerce of wood and wood products that were taken or sold in violation of any law meant to address illegal logging or species conservation. The new Lacey Act will also require wood products importers to declare the species, country of harvest, and other information related to timber imports.
Offenders who knowingly violate the law will face substantial civil and criminal penalties. Lesser penalties may be brought if a company is found not to have exercised appropriate “due care” to avoid illegal wood in their supply chain. A variety of activities might constitute elements of due care, including internal supply chain control, tracking systems, participation in step-wise programs, independent verification or certification, etc.
The legislation also allows for seizures of illegal wood products, regardless of whether the importer knew it was legal or not, if the government has evidence of an underlying illegality.
[ Click here for answers to common questions about the amended Lacey Act ]
[ Click here for a table that reviews the law’s features in more detail ]
While the passage of the Lacey Act Amendment is a landmark step, it is far from the end of the story. The proper implementation of these provisions will require good regulations and long-term engagement by government agencies, civil society and the private sector.
The Lacey Act has the potential to empower communities and civil society around the world in their efforts to combat illegal logging. It provides a critical new tool to bring elusive international criminals to justice.
The more that businesses and government agencies around the world learn about the Lacey Act, the more effective it will be. This signal from the world’s largest consumer will send broad ripples into global markets. It will reward companies that have already invested in legal and sustainable management, tracking systems, independent verification, or certification, and encourage more of these activities.
U.S. action can also serve to prod other leading industrial nations to fulfill their commitments to combat illegal logging. For example, at the 2005 G-8 Environment and Development Ministerial meeting in Gleneagles, Scotland, the nations’ leaders pledged: “We will act in our own countries. We will take steps to halt the import and marketing of illegally logged timber…”
Leaders in the UK are already taking the Lacey Act approach. A bill to prohibit import and sale of illegal wood was introduced to the House of Commons in April 2008. In presenting the bill, MP Barry Gardiner (Brent, North) pointed to “the leadership given in the United States by Congressman Earl Blumenauer and Senator Ron Wyden:
“Their initiatives and foresight have inspired the content of my Bill… The signal that would be given to world markets by both our countries enacting such legislation is incalculable.”
Click here to view our Lacey Resources page
Click here to review other EIA Forest Campaign reports
Click here to review recent Articles and EIA Press Releases on Illegal Logging
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