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Indonesia behind with certification

Indonesia is urging its national timber industry to immediately verify their timber production. Director of Education on Processing and Marketing of Forest Products at the Forestry Ministry, Dwi Sudharto, said verification under the Timber Legality Verification System (SVLK) must be done so that timber products are considered legal. Source: Tempo Interactive

“The European Union will implement the regulation of legal timber effective March 2013,” Dwi said. According to Dwi, the 27 countries joined in the EU have agreed that timber products must have a legal certificate through SVLK or EU Timber Regulation prior to entering [their countries].

Indonesia has prepared a license information unit on the legalization of timber products from Indonesia.

“So there is guarantee that timber from Indonesia is legal,” he said. In anticipation of the regulation of export destinations, Dwi says the government is requiring companies holding concession rights to have the certificates no later than December 21, 2012.

“Alas, only very few have processed this,” said Dwi.

There are currently 3262 companies with forest concessions. But until July 2012, only a mere 202 have legalized their timber products under SVLK,” he said.

The government is concerned if the SVLK is not implemented it will be detrimental to the domestic market. For example, illegal timber smuggled into China and Malaysia and can then be denied entry into the EU can actually return to Indonesia in the form of furniture.

“If this happens, it’ll be disastrous for us and the those in the industry who are legal,” he said. Indonesia’s timber exports to international markets have been increasing every year. Until February 2012, Indonesia has exported 3.8 million tons of timber,” said Dwi.

Although the European market only accounts for 10% of the total, it plays an important role in the timber export industries.

“Because usually the most difficult and tough to enter is the European market, so if there’s no problem with them, then there wouldn’t be any with other countries either,” he said.