Facing backlash, EU moves to delay deforestation rules

Facing backlash, EU moves to delay deforestation rules
By Umberto BACCHI
Brussels, Belgium (AFP) Oct 2, 2024

The European Commission on Wednesday proposed to delay by a year a ban on imports of products driving deforestation that has faced pushback from countries around the world.

The move triggered an immediate outcry from environmental groups, which had hailed the unprecedented law as a major breakthrough in the fight to protect nature and the climate.

The legislation, which will bar a vast range of goods -- from coffee to cocoa, soy, timber, palm oil, cattle, printing paper and rubber -- if produced using land that was deforested after December 2020, was set to take effect at the end of this year.

But the EU's top executive body faced mounting pressure to postpone the ban after trading partners from Brazil to the United States and even European heavyweight Germany spoke out against it.

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".

The "extra 12 months", which need to be approved by the European Parliament and member states, would serve as a "phasing-in period to ensure proper and effective implementation" of the law adopted in mid-2023, it said.

- 'Nature vandalism' -

EU imports are responsible for 16 percent of global deforestation, according to WWF data.

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.

Environmental group Mighty Earth described the proposed delay as an "act of nature vandalism".

"Delaying... is like throwing a fire extinguisher out of the window of a burning building," said the Mighty Earth's senior policy director Julian Oram.

Greenpeace called the delay "inexcusable". EU chief Ursula von der Leyen "might as well have wielded the chainsaw herself", it added.

Germany became the latest nation to call for a delayed rollout in September, saying the conditions were not yet there for the law to be efficiently applied.

Brazil, the United States and other countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America have complained the rules increased production and export costs, especially for smallholders.

Others objected that, with only a few months to go, the EU had yet to issue the promised compliance guidelines as well as a clear benchmarking system to divide countries into different risk categories.

The commission addressed the latter concern on Wednesday, publishing documents it said would provide additional clarity to companies and enforcing authorities -- as well as the methodology it will use for the benchmarking system.

A large majority of countries worldwide will be classified as "low risk", it said.

- 'Time to prepare' -

Germany's Agriculture Minister Cem Ozdemir welcomed the delay. It would give companies and countries "time to prepare adequately for the implementation of this important regulation", he said.

Critics have cast the anti-deforestation law as a major obstacle to reaching a free trade agreement between the EU and South American bloc Mercosur -- a plan championed by Germany, whose Chancellor Olaf Scholz called Wednesday for a rapid conclusion to the talks.

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.

The postponement would see the rules enter into force for large companies on December 30, 2025.

"Micro- and small enterprises" will have until June 30, 2026 to comply, the commission said.

"The extension proposal in no way puts into question the objectives or the substance of the law," it added.

But Luciana Tellez Chavez, a senior researcher on the environment at Human Rights Watch, accused von der Leyen of sabotaging "the most significant environmental legislation passed during her previous term".

The delay punished "all the companies and EU trading partners who deployed efforts and resources to comply" on time, and contradicted European commitments to end forest loss, she said.

The EU is the second-biggest market for the targeted products after China.

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