The arrival of new regulations is worrying the industry
This is not a new phenomenon, but it seems to be accelerating at an alarming rate. Government departments and influential groups are multiplying the number of standards and regulations, causing a growing lack of understanding among economic players. The resulting loss of competitiveness is impacting on the dynamism of the entire industry. Against this backdrop, the European regulation on deforestation and forest degradation (RDUE) is due to be implemented shortly.
Producers
While it is imperative to keep pace with changes in society, and without disputing the validity of most of the related demands, their implementation remains the responsibility of the producer (Natura 2000Forestry Code, etc.).
Politicians and public authorities do not always create new constraints for forest owners. Powerful lobbies can impose their vision on forestry companies and managers. For example, the FSC charter requires local or indigenous communities to have the right to intervene. Local communities refer to groups of people who live in or near forest areas and who depend on these forests for their subsistence, culture or general well-being, according to the FSC. These communities may include families, ethnic groups, villages, or communities with historical, economic, cultural or spiritual ties to the forest. In the field, group actions by people who interfere with the work of professionals are now increasingly common. At any moment, any work site or product flow between a buyer and a seller can be stopped by an organisation or a group of citizens.
Furthermore, in order to market wood products, distributors require manufacturers to certify their wood, which in Europe is represented by two well-known labels: the FSC and the PEFC. To guarantee the origin of the wood, a Silva Belgica - 5/2024 chain of custody has been put in place from the forest to the product on the shop shelves. Even if some malfunctions are reported in the media, the system has proved its worth over the last 20 years. Today, certification is an essential tool for both sustainable forest management and the timber trade. Over the years, the good practices to be followed have multiplied and require increased professionalism to be implemented by both producers and players in the timber industry. To maintain the motivation and interest of the forestry and timber industry, all new measures must be evaluated and realistic in their implementation.
It is against this backdrop that the new RDUE regulations are being applied.1 (Regulation against deforestation and forest degradation). Each country must interpret this European rule and translate it into national law. This time, a new legal obligation is being introduced, with potentially heavy burdens for the forestry and timber sector.
For most of the countries concerned, the notion of forest degradation is a legal novelty that needs to be set in the local context. The definition of this notion will probably leave ample recourse to any organisation or group of activists and will further accentuate the legal insecurity of players in the timber and forestry industries. Here, timber traceability will have to be achieved by geolocating plots. Collecting this data is not currently technically feasible. Tracking timber during processing sometimes seems impossible.
FORESTRY OPERATIONS
In Belgium, access to the forestry profession is still largely unregulated. This is not the case in neighbouring countries. In both Germany and France, qualifications (often administrative) are required to work in the forest. It should be remembered that forest certification involves the responsibilities of all those involved, including forest managers (chain of custody).
Managing the Regulation against Deforestation and Forest Degradation (RDUE) will require an additional administrative structure. Back home, the fear of seeing many small companies disappear is prompting manufacturers to look for technical solutions to help them comply with the RDUE.
If a simple solution is not found soon, many logging companies will find themselves outlawed. As a reminder, for each customer, each load of wood per forest plot will have to be encoded (with GPS coordinates) by the operator in a legal declaration system. The business is already difficult without adding these administrative tasks.
Over the summer, forestry contractors tried to make up for months of rain. Thunderstorms, administrative constraints (e.g. delays in obtaining forest access permits during sensitive periods for flora and fauna) and staff shortages limited this catch-up. However, the sunny, warm start to the second half of the season helped to maintain a good level of activity in the forest.
In hardwoods, log felling is picking up slowly. Chinese buyers are not enthusiastic, although beech is selling well. As a result, industrial timber is rarer. It is worth noting that oak prices held steady at the first sale of the autumn season in Chimay.
SAWMILLS
Softwood activity remained difficult this summer. Sawn timber exports to the USA have stalled. Business in Japan remains good, but nowhere near the level seen in the USA. The European construction market, particularly in Germany, is sluggish. Even though the selling price of materials, especially wood products, has fallen, the cost of construction has rocketed in recent years. The various regulations imposed on the construction sector are adding significantly to costs. In the current deteriorated economic climate, this is holding back many initiatives. The diagram on the following page shows the areas of recent regulation in the construction sector. Each area includes hundreds of regulations. The budgets devoted to standards represent an ever-increasing proportion of the cost of constructing a building. Studies and audits now account for an average of between 9% and 18% of the total cost.
Panels
Panel products are highly standardised, and for decades they have been subject to numerous standards. The origin of wood is becoming increasingly important. Certification plays a key role in market access. The British market was the first to impose forest certification almost 30 years ago. However, with Brexit, this market can now do without EC standards, and it seems to be moving away from these requirements (guaranteeing safety, conformity and quality) by importing panels manufactured in China, under social and environmental conditions that are certainly less strict than in Europe. Despite this, the Chinese panels are FSC-certified.
PAPER STORES
While business is good at the moment, European factories are worried. They see the EU RD as a new opportunity for producers outside Europe. In Asia and South America, wood resources, mainly provided by huge plantations (eucalyptus, pinus radiata), will not be affected by the EU RD, as they do not come from forests.
The administrative procedures will be much simpler than in Europe, and therefore much less cumbersome and costly. The legal risk weighing on European producers will be incomparable to that weighing on South American or Asian producers. Failure to comply with the EUDR could result in heavy fines in Europe (4% of turnover).
ENERGY
The constraints on wood supplies to power stations are increasing significantly. The implementation of RED2(European Directive on Renewable Energies) and then RED from 2026 will entail significant costs for mobilising biomass. The procedures will be very similar to the EU RD. The origin of the biomass will be increasingly controlled and the acceptance criteria will be ever stricter (and very often aligned with the specifications for PEFC or FSC certification), again increasing legal uncertainty. Some green energy players will no longer invest in biomass plants, preferring solar and wind power instead.
PEFC CERTIFICATION... NEW ADMINISTRATIVE CONSTRAINTS?
by Marine Rézette, Forest Certification Manager - Société Royale Forestière de Belgique
In July 2024, the new PEFC standards came into force for forest owners. One of the main concerns of forest owners is the increase in the administrative burden.
TO BE CERTIFIED, AN OWNER MUST :
- sign the membership forms and pay the annual invoice. It's quick and easy;
- send proof of ownership (notarised deeds or cadastral matrix extracted from myminfin). Obtaining these documents can feel like an administrative burden. However, there is a reason behind this requirement: on 24 January 2017, cash investigation broadcast a documentary on France 2 in which journalists managed to get a car park and a nuclear power station certified. To ensure that the label is serious, the certification bodies, such as the SRFB, are required to check that the certified plots of land are actually located in forests on the sector plan. This requires mapping work. The SRFB has decided to take full responsibility for this to relieve the burden on owners, who can also benefit from the work carried out by obtaining a complete map of their property. Proof of ownership and mapping are, of course, protected data within the SRFB's PEFC unit;
- draw up a simple management document. It is true that this document has become more substantial since the arrival of the new standards. The simple management document is a real tool for the field, useful for the owner to have a global vision of his forest, in time and space. This tool can be used over a 20-year period and is easily adaptable once it has been produced. It also opens up discussions and arouses the curiosity of future generations. To facilitate the work of owners, a model is available in paper or digital form on the SRFB website, as well as in a web version at www.maproprieteforestiere.be ;
- keep certain documents. The certified owner is required to keep the certificates of origin of the seedlings and to present his sales slips and specifications for the sale of wood. Templates are available on the SRFB website.
IS PEFC CERTIFICATION AN ESSENTIAL TOOL?
In 2020 and 2024, the timber industry has launched calls for forest owners to increase their certified areas (see Silva Belgica 6/2020 and Silva Belgica 4/2024). This demonstrates a real need among Walloon companies for certified wood. If they cannot find enough certified wood in Belgium, they risk turning to other countries to fill their quota. It is therefore essential to increase the area of certified forest if we want to support the philosophy of a local industry.
In addition to having a map of the property and tools for producing a simple management document, as well as the opportunity to take part in targeted training courses provided by the SRFB, obtaining PEFC certification can also be used by the owner as a lever to ensure that the various stakeholders (operators, hunters, etc.) are obliged to respect the forest. In addition, with the new standards concerning game pressure, the SRFB hopes to use the data that will be collected and collated by locality to put the voice of landowners to the relevant players.
PEFC CERTIFICATION: AN ADVANTAGE IN MEETING RDUE REQUIREMENTS?
PEFC International, PEFC Belgium and the SRFB are currently working on the RDUE to see how PEFC certification can meet the new European requirements and lighten this new administrative burden for certified owners. Owners will be kept informed of progress on this subject.
- The Regulation against Deforestation and Forest Degradation (RDUE) is the new European regulation that aims to prohibit the placing on the market or export from the EU market of products that have contributed to deforestation or forest degradation after 31 December 2020. This text came into force on 29 June 2023 and will apply to all Member States on 30 December. Source : https://fr.fsc.org/fr-fr/le-rdue.
- Renewable energy directive.
Article written by Éric Letombe
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