Australasia's home for timber news and information

UN backs sanctions against Myanmar timber from US, UK and Canada

Last week the US blacklisted Myanmar Timber Enterprise (MTE) following the country’s military coup. Now with a new set of sanctions in place a UN human rights expert welcomed the announcement by the United States, the United Kingdom and Canada, highlighting in particular the US design
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Urgent action needed to resolve soaring US lumber prices

Members of Congress and the Biden administration are heeding the concerns of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and its grassroots on the need to take action to resolve soaring lumber prices, supply shortages and tariffs that are hurting home builders, home buyers, the h
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The forest policy of Myanmar’s military administration

Myanmar’s Forestry Minister, Khin Maung Yi, was quoted by the state-owned newspaper “The New Light of Myanmar” as saying the priority of the administration regarding timber extraction will be forest protection, only the minimum harvest to meet demand will be permitted. Source: Tropica
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New Forests appoints independent director to its board

New Forests Pty Ltd, the international sustainable forestry investment manager, has appointed Christine Loh as an independent director to its board. Her appointment supports New Forests’ global growth aspirations and desire to scale environmental and social impact in the forest sector
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Handcrafted mahogany electric boats

Finnish boat builder Elwood has launched a handcrafted electric powered boat. Entrepreneur Pasi Virnes, CEO and Design Director of Elwood, has a background in mechanical engineering and started work in earnest on the Elwood about a year ago, with a vision of a boat with the feel and ‘
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German investment in Indonesia and China for specialty fibres

Germany’s Lenzing Group will invest more than Euro 200 million in its production sites in Purwakarta, Indonesia, and Nanjing, China, to convert existing standard viscose capacity into environmentally responsible specialty fibres. Source: Lesprom The Lenzing Group is a global supplier
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Collaboration to bring truck platooning to forestry

Robotic Research a global leader in Automated Driving Systems (ADS) and FPInnovations, a Canadian private non-profit research and development centre will collaborate to develop an off-road truck platooning system for the forest industry. Source: Timberbiz Truck platooning is the linki
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US blacklists Myanmar Timber Enterprises

The United States has imposed fresh Myanmar-related sanctions, targeting two state-owned enterprises in the latest in a series of punitive actions following the country’s military coup as Washington said it would take further action. Source: CNBC The US Treasury Department in a statem
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Russia confirms log export ban

The Russian government is not considering lifting the ban on the export of logs, which will enter into force in 2022, RIA news cited Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Trutnev. Source: Lesprom “The government of the Russian Federation has made a decision to gradually increase export duties”,
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Paper bottles in production

Stora Enso and packaging technology company Pulpex will go into production of eco-friendly paper bottles and containers made from wood fibre pulp. These renewable products will offer an alternative to PET plastics and glass. Source: Timberbiz The joint development agreement is exclusi
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