A logging yard in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest. Tarcisio Schnaider / iStock / Getty Images Plus
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A new investigative report, Tricks, Traders and Trees, by international NGO the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) reveals widespread illegal logging, corruption and fraud in the Brazilian Amazon.
The investigation traced illegal timber that had originated from five logging sites in Pará state to the United States and European Union, despite laws that prohibit the importing of illegal timber and require due diligence from companies.
“Our investigation shows how illegal Amazon timber is flooding EU and U.S. markets, fueling unfair competition for legitimate companies despite laws banning the trade in illicit wood. European and U.S. consumers don’t want to walk on the remnants of illegally cut rainforest when strolling their local seaside boardwalk,” said Rick Jacobsen, senior policy manager at EIA US, in a press release from the NGO.
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The investigators were able to identify 30 importers that had bought the “tainted wood.” They found that Brazil’s illegal logging industry used “sophisticated schemes” to fake the origins of timber by artificially inflating standing tree volumes and falsifying paperwork.
“In one case, timber was exported from a protected area where the owner was also illegally mining gold; in another, it was laundered through a site embargoed for illegal deforestation by Brazil’s environmental agency, IBAMA,” EIA said in the press release. “Twenty-six of the 35 sawmills and exporters that bought the tainted timber have been fined by IBAMA — a sign of systemic abuse.”
Investigators discovered widespread corruption allegations throughout Brazil’s logging industry, including bribery of politicians and enforcement agents.
“Everyone does it,” one insider said.
The U.S. and the EU are the largest timber export markets for Brazil. Both have established laws that require companies to ensure they are not importing wood that is illegally produced: the Lacey Act in the U.S. and the EU Timber Regulation, soon to be replaced with the stricter EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).
“Illegal logging harms forests, hurts ecosystems and feeds organized crime, undercutting the rule of law. Brazil ranks fourth in the global tropical hardwood industry, with the U.S. and EU its largest export markets. Yet almost one third of the timber extracted from the country’s Amazon states is thought to be illegal – a conservative assessment,” the report said.
The dense tropical hardwood ipê (Handroanthus spp.) is one of the highest valued and most traded types of timber because of its durability. It is commonly used to make outdoor decks, including large public construction projects like New York’s Long Island boardwalk.
Due to excessive logging, ipê trees are rarer than they once were and are now protected under the Convention for International Trade in Endangered Species of Flora and Fauna.
A 2019 report by the European Commission Expert Group confirmed that importing timber from the Brazilian Amazon was “extremely high risk,” and that additional due diligence measures would need to be taken by importers.
“The investigative report calls for immediate and robust action including traceability and transparency in timber supply chains, stricter enforcement and penalties in Brazil and destination countries, and improved international collaboration to protect the Amazon rainforest from ongoing environmental crimes,” the press release said.
The report’s findings come amid a decision late last year to delay EUDR’s implementation by one year, and as the EU has been attempting to weaken European companies’ new due diligence requirements.
Meanwhile, in the U.S., environmental law enforcement resources have seen unprecedented cuts.
“This is not the time to water down or weaken enforcement of legal requirements for EU and U.S. companies to ensure they aren’t buying illegal wood. We need more, not less, scrutiny on this high-risk timber trade that is trashing the Amazon rainforest,” Jacobsen said.
Brazil has announced ambitious targets for reducing its emissions and curbing deforestation ahead of hosting the United Nations COP30 climate summit in November.
“Cracking down on rampant criminal logging, which often acts as a door opener to complete deforestation, will be crucial for Brazil to reach its climate targets,” said Chris Moye, Latin American expert with EIA US, in the press release.
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