Italy has been exposed at the heart of an ongoing trade in illicit timber from Myanmar, in defiance of both EU trade regulations and sanctions imposed in response to the violent military coup earlier this year. In this report, EIA identifies a total of 27 Italian timber traders importing teak timber products.
The United Nations General Assembly special session on corruption from 2-4 June 2021 (UNGASS) is an opportunity to highlight the important relationship between environmental crime and corruption and to galvanise governments and relevant agencies into action. The corruption that drives wildlife and forest crime is extensive and systemic and will be difficult to stop; arrests of ‘rogue individuals’ will not prevent further corruption. However, there are steps which EIA believes could be effective.
Policy recommendations for the Government of China prior to the 15th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity in Kunming, 11-24 October 2021
After viewing documents for 10 shipments of teak imported into Croatia and analysing trade data of reported timber exports from Myanmar to a range of countries, the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) has identified a pattern of apparent tax evasion by companies exporting timber products from Myanmar.
The US Lacey Act and The European Union Timber Regulation (EUTR). In this briefing, we explore the previously unrealised fact that both laws can work together, with the Lacey Act prohibiting timber sold in violation of the EUTR, as a ’foreign law‘
Indonesia’s long-running problem with illegal logging has had devastating impacts. Illegal loggers and traders have particularly focused on high value timber species such as merbau. In recent years, however, the Indonesian Government, with support from civil society, has made significant efforts to combat this destructive crime.