A Cabinet Office report confirms that timber used in building work at Admiralty Arch was illegal

Illegally logged timber from the rainforests of Papua New Guinea is being used during renovation work at the Houses of Parliament.

Greenpeace investigators have found the timber, in the form of at least two tonnes of plywood, in the £5million restructuring of the Press Area. The rainforest wood is protecting floors, stairs and walls while work is being carried out.[1]

And this is the fourth time in as many years that Greenpeace has revealed that the Government is using illegal and unsustainable timber.[2]

As recently as July, Greenpeace exposed the use of the same rainforest plywood at Admiralty Arch, the home of the Cabinet Office. Although the Government initially said they had proof that the timber was from 'legal and sustainable' sources, a subsequent internal investigation sent to Greenpeace makes it clear that this was not the case.[3]

The magnificent forests of Papua New Guinea form part of the few remaining significant ancient forests on earth. They are home to many unique species of plants and animals such as the tree kangaroo and the world's largest butterfly, as well as indigenous communities that depend on the forest for their livelihood. But so-called 'robber barons' are plundering the rainforest with impunity, their crimes ranging from illegal logging to corruption, torture and rape. A recent report funded by the UK Government on logging in PNG found that illegality, environmental destruction and corruption were rife. But this remains the place where Blair is getting his timber.

Belinda Fletcher, Greenpeace forests campaigner, said: "It's a disgrace that Parliament is awash with tropical plywood ripped from the world's last rainforests. While Tony Blair is busy worrying about his legacy, the world's last rainforests are being bulldozed for cheap throwaway products like plywood.

"If the Government is serious about ending its role in rainforest destruction, the UK must sort out its shambolic timber policy by ensuring that only Forest Stewardship Council certified timber is used in public building projects, and by introducing a ban on the import of illegal timber. This is the only way to stop this destructive trade."

Central government procurement accounts for approximately 20 per cent of all the timber used in the UK, while the broader public sector accounts for as much as 40 per cent.[4] In 2001 Tony Blair promised that the Government would only purchase legal and sustainable timber. However, a combination of weak guidelines and failed implementation has meant that the policy is failing, as the illegal plywood found at the Houses of Parliament and Admiralty Arch shows.

For more information, contact the Greenpeace press office on 020 7865 8255.

Video and stills available, including clip reel of Papua New Guinea rainforest destruction, previous Greenpeace protests over government timber procurement and the plywood used in the House of Commons.

Notes for editors:
[1] Greenpeace tested two lots of tropical hardwood faced plywood being used at the Houses of Parliament, which have been confirmed as the species bintangor, sourced almost exclusively from the rainforests of PNG. Chinese mills producing the plywood found on site have confirmed to Greenpeace that the veneers used are sourced from Papua New Guinea.

[2] Previous Greenpeace exposes of Government timber scandals include:

• in April 2002 Greenpeace occupied the Cabinet Office at 22 Whitehall following an undercover investigation that revealed the Government was installing new doors and windows made from Sapele, sourced from companies known to be logging illegally in the rainforests of Cameroon;
• in June 2003 Greenpeace occupied the new Home Office headquarters at 2 Marsham Street in Westminster after finding plywood from Indonesia's last rainforests, supplied by companies notorious for illegal logging, corruption and human rights abuses;
• in July 2006 Greenpeace occupied the roof of Admiralty Arch, the home of the Prime Minister's Strategy Unit, in Westminster after finding plywood illegal logged from the rainforests of Papua New Guinea being used as hoardings around the site.

[3] Key findings of the Cabinet Office internal investigation include:

• bintangor faced plywood, manufactured in China, was used at Admiralty Arch;
• recognition of "the strength of the supporting information provided by Greenpeace";
• documentation supplied by timber companies was unsatisfactory proof of compliance with Government policy;
• the need for 'legal and sustainable timber' was not passed down the supply chain;
• there was insufficient comprehension of timber procurement and how to audit it effectively.

[4] Environmental Audit Committee, House of Commons (18th January 2006), Sustainable Timber

finland_press.jpg

London - 19 September 2006: A Greenpeace International report released today reveals how illegally logged timber from Russia is being freely imported into Finland to factories including those of Stora Enso, which is partly owned by the Finnish State.

In its report, Partners in Crime: A Greenpeace Investigation into Finland's Illegal Timber Trade with Russia, Greenpeace has documented wide-spread illegal logging in the Russian Republic of Karelia.(1)

During undercover field research between June and August 2006, campaigners witnessed timber being harvested in violation of Russian forest and environmental laws,(2) then transported across the Finnish border to be processed by industry giants UPM Kymmene and Stora Enso.

Products from these mills are exported throughout Europe and beyond, as far away as Japan. Customers of these mills include liquid packaging manufacturers, such as Tetra Pak and Elopak.

"Both Stora Enso and UPM Kymmene pride themselves on their reputations for 'sustainable' forest management. However these companies can not have it both ways. They cannot claim to be good corporate citizens while procuring illegally and unsustainably logged timber from Russia," said Belinda Fletcher, Greenpeace Forest Campaigner.

She continued, "Finland can no longer distance itself from the laundering of illegal timber. As President of the EU, it is the Finnish government's duty to support effective EU-wide legislation stopping the import of illegal and unsustainable timber into Europe. Instead, Finland is allowing the EU to serve as a clearing house for the spoils of forest crime."

The European Commission promised to propose options for legislation to combat the import of illegal timber into Europe, aimed at filling the gaps of an earlier voluntary programme. However, to date, it has failed to deliver. In the meantime, Finland has put economic interests before forest protection, claiming that industry-led voluntary measures are sufficient to control timber trade. The evidence provided in the Greenpeace report makes it clear that these are inadequate.

Greenpeace is one of 180 NGOs and over 80 progressive businesses calling for effective EU-wide legislation to ban illegal timber and to ensure that all timber products on the market come from responsibly managed forests.(3)

Notes to Editors:
[1] Partners in Crime: A Greenpeace Investigation into Finland's Illegal Timber Trade with Russia availble at /media/reports/partners-in-crime-finlands-illegal-timber-trade-with-russia

[2] Karelian forest management and exploitation is based on management plans that have not been assessed by forestry and environmental experts or by civil society, a clear violation of Russian Federal law. In addition to the absence of an EIA, further violations were documented by Greenpeace.

[3] Factsheets on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) Industry and NGO statements can be downloaded from http://www.greenpeace.org/forests/finn-russia-industry and http://www.greenpeace.org/forests/finn-russia-ngo respectively.

For further information, please contact Greenpeace UK press office on 0207 865 8225

For related visuals, please contact Franca Michienzi, Greenpeace International, +31 653 819 255

Greenpeace volunteers scale Admiralty Arch

Greenpeace volunteers scale Admiralty Arch as investigation exposes government's use of illegal timber

The Prime Minister's efforts to portray himself as an environmental champion suffered another set-back today as Greenpeace revealed that the renovation of his own Cabinet Office building is using illegally logged rainforest timber. The refurbishment is using plywood hoardings made with illegally logged timber sourced from the rainforests of Papua New Guinea. The Whitehall building is home to Mr Blair's own Strategy Unit.

At 6.45am this morning 14 Greenpeace climbers scaled the Admiralty Arch wing of the building. The volunteers have hung a huge banner which reads: 'REPEAT OFFENDER! BLAIR'S TRASHED ANOTHER RAINFOREST!' Other activists are covering the rainforest timber with plywood certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).(1) Later today 30 year-old Sam Moko from Papua New Guinea will take a piece of the illegal timber to Downing Street with a demand that Tony Blair stop fuelling the destruction of his rainforest home.

The Cabinet Office building was at the centre of a controversy in 2002 when it was revealed that a previous building project used African rainforest timber. On that occasion Tony Blair told the Commons the project was using sustainably sourced timber before later back-tracking. The following year the new Home Office building was found to be using illegal rainforest plywood from Indonesia (2).

Greenpeace executive director Stephen Tindale is on top of Admiralty Arch. He said: "When it comes to trashing the world's last rainforests Tony Blair is a serial offender. It's hard to believe illegal and unsustainable timber has been found at the home of his own strategy unit. What better illustration could there be that his government's timber procurement policy is totally ineffectual? Blair has a history of talking up his green credentials, but it's about time he actually took effective action. The first thing he needs to do is to ban the import of illegal timber into the UK market place."

The Greenpeace volunteers have hoisted their own campaign flag on the famous Admiralty flagpole in the hope that Britain can lead the world in forest protection.

Central government procurement accounts for approximately 20% of the timber used in the UK, while the broader public sector accounts for as much as 40%.(3) In 2001 Tony Blair promised that the government would only purchase legal and sustainable timber. This commitment followed the introduction of a timber procurement policy the previous year, requiring all departments and agencies to 'actively seek' to buy such timber. However, a combination of weak guidelines and failed implementation has meant that the impact of the policy remains limited and in the case of the plywood at Admiralty Arch is failing to prevent illegal timber from being used.

The magnificent forests of Papua New Guinea form part of the few remaining significant ancient forests on earth. It is home to wildlife such as the tree kangaroo, the world's largest pigeon, the largest butterfly on earth (the Queen Alexandra's birdwing, with a wing span of over 11 inches) and the world's longest lizard, along with over 3000 species of orchid. But so-called 'robber barons' are plundering the rainforest with impunity. Their crimes range from illegal logging to corruption, torture and rape. A World Bank funded independent review examining logging in Papua New Guinea found widespread and serious illegalities across the industry. These findings were reinforced by a UK government funded report which found extensive environmental damage, corruption and social upheaval in logging areas.

Before delivering illegal timber to Downing Street Sam Moko from Papua New Guinea said: "Logging companies are harvesting our forest at an alarming rate and we are questioning the survival of our future generations as forest dependent communities. People are now faced with environmental, social and health problems as a result of the bad practices by the foreign logging companies. Local people have no money to pursue court cases against the companies. What can we do? I call on Tony Blair to ban the import of illegal timber."

Greenpeace is calling on the government to finally take effective action to end its role in forest destruction by ensuring that it uses only FSC-certified timber on its construction sites and introducing a ban on the import of illegal timber into the UK  the only way to stop this destructive trade.

Download the full background briefing: Repeat Offender: How Tony Blair's government continues to trash the world's rainforests

For more contact Greenpeace on 07801 212967 / 0207 8658255

Video and stills available, including clipreel of PNG rainforest destruction and previous Greenpeace protests over government timber procurement.

Notes:

(1) Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certified timber is the best guarantee that timber products come from environmentally and socially responsible sources.

(2) Previous Greenpeace exposes include:

Cabinet Office: In April 2002 Greenpeace occupied the Cabinet Office at 22 Whitehall and declared it an ancient forest crime scene. This followed an undercover investigation which revealed that the government was installing new doors and windows made from sapele, sourced from companies known to be logging illegally in the rainforests of Cameroon.

Home Office: In June 2003 Greenpeace occupied the construction site of the new Home Office headquarters at 2 Marsham Street in Westminster after finding plywood from Indonesia's last rainforests, supplied by companies notorious for illegal logging, corruption and human rights abuses.

(3) Environmental Audit Committee, House of Commons (18th January 2006), 'Sustainable Timber'

Brian Baring, traditional PNG landowner, makes his point outside Alchemy Partners UK office

Customary PNG landowner asks the timber trade to source 'good' wood

Today, Brian Baring, of the Gingilang clan on the north coast of Papua New Guinea (PNG), delivered a giant letter to Alchemy Partners, asking them to stop daughter company Montague L Meyer from trashing PNG's rainforests for plywood. Logging in PNG is some of the worst on the planet, with virtually all industrial logging being illegal.

Customary Landowner Brian Baring says, "I have seen our forests destroyed by foreign companies. They do not respect us or our culture, or our sacred sites. They run over our food gardens with their machinery. They drive their trucks and bulldozers through our streams polluting it with oil and mud with no regard that people downstream drink from those streams. They take the trees they want and destroy many many more to get to the trees they want."

Read Brian's account of how illegal logging is destroying the Gingilang way of life

The magnificent Paradise Forest of PNG is home to wildlife such as the tree kangaroo and the largest butterfly on earth - the Queen Alexandra's birdwing, with a wing span of over 11 inches - as well as millions of indigenous people who depend on this forest for their livelihood and way of life. Yet logging companies are voraciously plundering the rainforest, and the country could be logged out in 15 years.

He continued "I am in Europe to bring the message of my people to companies like Alchemy Partners and Montague Meyer and ask them to stop buying products that are made from the forests of Papua New Guinea, stolen from our land and our people."

Last year a major Greenpeace investigation uncovered a criminal trail of illegally logged rainforest timber from the world's largest tropical island, which is 'laundered' through China before arriving on shop shelves in the UK. Since then many companies, like Wolseley Build Centers, have agreed to remove all Chinese tropical hardwood plywood from their stores, however Montague L Meyer continues to sell it into the UK market place. Recent microscopic analysis of timber sold by the company has confirmed that it is made of Bintangor and other tropical species.

Greenpeace launches Forest Rescue station in PNG

During his UK trip, Mr Baring and Greenpeace also met members of the Timber Trade Federation (1) who have suspended trade in plywood made from PNG's rainforests and discussed the sourcing of more environmentally and socially responsible products.

Belinda Fletcher, Greenpeace Campaigner said, "The Timber Trade Federation has recognized that sourcing from Papua New Guinea (PNG) is currently unacceptable. They are now looking at domestic Chinese alternatives that are not sourced from ancient forests. Montague Meyer is one of the pariahs of the UK trade who continue to source from PNG."

She continued "There are good alternatives. Buy timber certified by the Forest Stewardship Council - it's the best way to guarantee that timber has come from environmentally and socially responsible sources."

Greenpeace is calling for legislation to ban the import of illegal timber into the UK and Europe and to ensure that all timber imports are legal and from well managed forests.

Notes

(1) Attendees included representatives of the Timber Trade Federation, Caledonian Plywood, FEPCO, Premier Forest Products and Graeme Holburn.

Sharing the blame - China's role in Ancient Forest Destruction

As Tony Blair heads to Jakarta on the latest leg of his Asian tour, Greenpeace is demanding that the Prime Minister addresses the role Britain is playing in the destruction of Indonesia's ancient forests. The visit comes just one month after the Indonesian forest minister asked EU countries to stop acting as markets for illegal timber.

Greenpeace today released a new report detailing how illegal timber from some of the world's most endangered forests - including Indonesia's Paradise Forest - is being laundered through China before being shipped to Europe. Greenpeace wants Mr Blair to take steps to ban the import into the UK of illegally logged timber. The trade through China is driven by domestic and international demand, but Mr Blair and other European leaders have so far failed to implement strong legislation to protect the worlds last ancient forests.

The report 'Sharing the Blame: Global Consumption and China's Role in Ancient Forest Destruction', tracks illegally logged timber, particularly from the Paradise Forests that stretch across Asia, being shipped to China. There it is made into furniture, flooring and plywood for domestic consumption and for export.

The report reveals that China is now the world's largest importer of tropical woods, with half of all tropical trees logged globally now end up in China. Much of this wood comes from Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, where more than three-quarters of the logging is illegal. EU states like Britain play a key role in fuelling the international demand for timber products from countries and regions where illegal and destructive logging is rife. The EU is the second largest market for sawn timber from Asia and the second largest market for Asian plywood.

"Illegal logging is rampant in many of the countries that supply China, including Indonesia, and much of the wood ends up in Europe" said Pat Venditti of Greenpeace. "Developed countries like Britain are fuelling this drive for cheap timber, providing the financial incentives for companies to illegally and destructively log the world's last ancient forests. Tony Blair and other EU leaders must immediately implement legislation to ban the import of illegal timber into Europe and ensure that all timber product imports are from legal and responsibly managed forests."

Indonesia and the EU are currently negotiating a voluntary partnership agreement which is meant to ensure only legal and sustainable timber from Indonesia can enter Europe. However, VPA's will not address the problem of illegally logged timber being 'laundered' through third party countries, such as China.

The report also reveals that the world's forests cannot sustain China's escalating demand coupled with current consumption patterns in developed countries. In the last 10 years alone China's exports of wood products to developed countries increased by 350%. Greenpeace warns that if China were to increase its per capita paper consumption to that of the USA, for example, this would require nearly 1.6 billion additional cubic metres of wood to be logged - equivalent to the Earth's entire yearly harvest.

The report applauds some international buyers for starting to address the issue of illegal logging. Recently a number of companies in Europe have committed to stop purchasing Chinese plywood made from illegally logged timber from Papua New Guinea. These include Wolseley (UK), PontMeyer (Netherlands), Castorama (France) and the French Federation of Timber Importers (Le Commerce du Bois). Governments, however, are lagging.

Notes

The Paradise Forests stretch from South East Asia, across the islands of Indonesia and on towards Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands in the Pacific.

For more information and pictures contact Greenpeace on 0207 865 8255.

A grizzly bear swimming in the waters of Knight Inlet, British Columbia

London/Vancouver, February 7th, 2006 - Greenpeace applauded today's news that a third of Canada's unique Great Bear Rainforest is to be saved from the chainsaws. Following a decade of campaigning by Greenpeace, other leading environmental groups [1] and indigenous First Nations, the British Columbian Government has pledged to fully protect two million hectares of the ancient forest [2] and to dramatically improve bad logging practices in the rest of the forest.

"Today's decision is welcome news for the Great Bear Rainforest which was being destroyed at an alarming rate to feed a growing international appetite for wood, paper and toilet roll," said Gavin Edwards, Global Forest Campaign Coordinator, Greenpeace International. "The world's last ancient forests need a global network of protected areas to survive - and the Great Bear Rainforest is a good start."

The protected forest will be a haven for threatened or endangered species including grizzly, black and rare white 'Spirit' bears, wild salmon, eagles and wolves as well as 1,000-year-old cedar trees and ancient spruce. In recent years, its rapid destruction has raised international concern and protest.

Companies such as BBC Worldwide Publishing put pressure on the logging companies to protect the forest and over 80 others, including Mitsubishi Corporation and the Belgian Timber Trade Federation, even stopped buying products made from Great Bear Rainforest wood.

In response, the British Columbian Government has committed to:

- Fully protecting 33 per cent of the Great Bear Rainforest from logging;
- Making sure the logging industry implements a strict ecosystem-based management system in the rest of the forest by 2009. This means any logging that will be sustainable in nature, and that many additional areas will be protected. The entire forest covers 6.4m hectares.

"Today's announcement plants the seeds to safeguard this global treasure but the true measure of success will be signs of change on the ground and in the forest," said Amanda Carr, forest campaigner for Greenpeace Canada. "Greenpeace will be watching to see if the British Columbian Government follows through on these commitments and takes this opportunity to make the Great Bear Rainforest a global model of forest sustainability."

Greenpeace is supporting an initiative to raise $120m to help develop a new and diverse economy in the Great Bear Rainforest, based on conservation. To date, $90m has been raised, including $30m from the British Columbian government. A further $30m is needed from the Canadian federal government.

Greenpeace is an independent campaigning organization, which uses non-violent, creative communication tools to put the spotlight on global environmental problems and to drive towards solutions essential for a green and peaceful future. It is committed to protecting the world's last ancient forests and the plants, animals and people who depend on them.

For more information please contact:

Amanda Carr, Forest Campaigner, Greenpeace Canada (+1 604 839-8760)

Gavin Edwards, Global Forest Campaign Coordinator, Greenpeace International (+31 652 391 429)

Images of the Great Bear Rainforest are available on request.

Notes to Editors:
[1] Greenpeace, ForestEthics, Rainforest Action Network and Sierra Club of Canada, BC Chapter.
[2] This total includes new and previously protected areas and special no logging zones.

Greenpeace blockades DEFRA in protest at illegal rainforest timber imports

Illegal timber 'a fact of life within the UK timber trade' says committee

MPs from across the political spectrum today called for urgent legislation banning imports of illegal timber into the UK. They say new laws are needed to protect the world's forests and warn that 'time is running out.'

The demand came in a report by the all party Environmental Audit Committee (EAC), which was evaluating progress on the issue since it completed an inquiry in 2002. The committee today stated that 'illegal timber is currently a fact of life within the UK timber trade.'

Greenpeace forests campaigner Pat Venditti said: "The MPs are absolutely right, without new laws to stop illegally logged timber flooding into the UK this country will continue to fuel the market in a trade that's catastrophic for the environment. The report sets down clear action the government must take in order to protect the worlds last forests. With green issues dominating party politics its now time to see how seriously Tony Blair takes this issue."

The Committee said it would like to see the current rules on timber procurement extended from central government to local authorities and other governmental bodies. The MPs also said there should be a requirement for government bodies to purchase only sustainable rather than just legal timber. Ministers should also continue to push for legislation in Europe, the report said.

For more contact the Greenpeace press office on 0207 865 8255

Greenpeace activists at the entrance to the EU agriculture and development ministers meeting in Luxembourg on 24th October 2005

LUXEMBOURG: Greenpeace activists will today (24th October) send a clear message to EU agriculture and development ministers meeting in Luxembourg and Leeds (UK): that unless they prohibit illegal timber imports to the EU and support sustainable forest management globally, their efforts to stop illegal logging will not end rainforest destruction in the poorest regions of the world. Farm Ministers are due to reach a political agreement on voluntary measures to combat illegal logging and support forest governance reform in timber-producing countries [1].

Activists in Luxembourg have secured a banner at the entrance to the meeting reading 'Ban illegal timber'. At both meetings, they will also attempt to present political representatives with letters made of illegal timber from the world's last rainforests, which continues to flood onto European markets.

"Currently the EU is proposing voluntary measures to tackle illegal logging; this is like asking companies to voluntarily pay taxes. Legality should be a precondition for doing business not a vain wish," said Sebastien Risso of Greenpeace. "Efforts to clamp down on illegal logging will fail unless there are proper laws in place to stop the European demand for cheap timber products from illegal and destructive sources."

As a major market for tropical hardwood, the EU plays a key role in the international trade in illegal and destructively sourced timber. Yet, currently no laws in Europe allow authorities to seize shipments of illegally logged timber, nor hold importers and traders of illegal timber accountable, who remain free to profit from forest destruction.

The package of measures proposed by the Commission includes voluntary agreements between the EU and timber producing countries, which are aimed at improving governance and forest management on the ground and implementing a licensing scheme to ensure they only export legal timber to Europe. Negotiations are expected to begin next year with five "partner countries": Cameroon, Congo Brazzaville, Ghana, Indonesia and Malaysia.

Greenpeace has repeatedly drawn attention to the loopholes in the scheme, including the fact that the partnership agreements are purely voluntary; that illegal timber could still be exported from partner countries via third countries (such as China) for processing and enter the EU as 'laundered' timber; that it applies only to a limited range of timber products [2]; and that it will be built on existing licensing schemes which have been criticised as corrupt and ineffective.

The scheme also fails to consider sustainable forest management. Without strong safeguards and meaningful input from civil society and local communities in producer countries, negotiations could backfire and result in the laundering of illegally and destructively harvested timber through the established licensing system, Greenpeace warns.

To outline how legislation to stop the import of illegal timber could work, Greenpeace, FERN and WWF drafted model legislation in November 2004. Over 180 NGOs and 70 EU businesses, as well as the European Parliament, supported this call for legislation. To date, the European Commission has failed to deliver on a promise for legislative options.

"Europe must take responsibility for what it allows on the market. Without effective measures to guarantee sustainable trade and consumption, the last ancient forests on Earth will vanish," said Sebastien Risso.

In the last 10 days, Greenpeace has exposed a trail of rainforest timber to the EU supplied by companies known to be actively involved in illegal logging activities: from the Congo Basin to Italy, from Papua New Guinea via China to the UK, and from the Brazilian Amazon to Spain, where it has been used in the renovation of the Reina Sofia Museum in Madrid [3].

More information
Contact Sebastien Risso, EU forests policy adviser, Greenpeace European Unit, tel: +32 (0)496 12 70 09, or e-mail sebastien.risso@diala.greenpeace.org.
Katharine Mill, media officer, Greenpeace European Unit, tel: tel +32 (0)2 274 1903, +32 (0)496 156 229

Editor's notes

1. The representatives are Margaret Beckett (UK Minister for DEFRA), the Chair of the Agricultural Minister's Meeting in Luxembourg, Hillary Benn (UK Minister for Development) Chair of the Development Minister's meeting in Leeds and Louis Michel, European Commissioner for Development.The European Commission submitted an Action Plan on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT) in May 2003. It recommended the development of: Voluntary Partnership Agreements (VPAs) with producer countries, which are aimed at supporting governance reforms, providing capacity building and establishing a licensing system to ensure that only timber certified as legal will be exported from signatory countries to the EU. The development of further legislative options that could include legislation to prohibit the import of illegally logged timber products into Europe." The implementation of a green procurement policy which aims to ensure that public money is spent to purchase only timber products coming from legal and sustainable sources.


2. The licensing scheme will initially cover plywood, logs and sawn timber products. Where agreed with a partner country, the range of products could be extended to other product categories.


3. For more information on the UK action, please visit : www.saveordelete.com.
   
   See the new Greenpeace fact sheet: Lawless: how Europe's borders remain open to illegal timber"

Greenpeace volunteers blockade DEFRA in protest at illegal timber imports into the UK

Flagship Government offices were today (19th October) blockaded by Greenpeace in protest at the tonnes of illegal timber from the world's last rainforests that continues to flood into the UK.

The Government has known about the illegal trade for years, yet has failed to do anything to stop illegal timber entering the UK.

Shortly after 7.30am, Greenpeace volunteers dumped over a tonne of plywood secured with large chains over the entrance to Defra - the Government department responsible for the environment. Two activists chained themselves to the plywood to prevent it being removed, and climbers scaled the outside of the building and secured a banner reading 'BAN ILLEGAL TIMBER.'

Today's action follows a major Greenpeace investigation which has uncovered a criminal trail of illegally logged rainforest timber from the world's largest tropical island, which is 'laundered' through China before arriving on shop shelves in the UK. The companies logging this timber are not only linked to environmental destruction, but also to serious human rights abuses, including torture and rape.

Illegally logged timber from Papua New Guinea, home to animals and plants found nowhere else on the planet, has been traced back to UK ports, building sites and builders' merchants. It has been on a 14,000 mile journey via the processing mills of China, where it is transformed into plywood and then exported to markets around the world, including the UK.

This plywood is openly available in builders' merchants such as Wolseley, who own more than 200 Build Centers across the UK. It has also been found on building sites, such as at the University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies during renovation work.

The logging industry on Papua New Guinea is dominated by Malaysian logging giant Rimbunan Hijau, a company that has been directly linked not only to environmental destruction, but also to human rights abuses including torture and rape. Illegally logged timber from Rimbunan Hijau, and other companies, can be found as plywood at Wolseley Build Centers and other builders' merchants throughout the UK.

China is by far the largest importer of rainforest destruction in the world. For every ten tropical logs shipped from the world's threatened rainforests, five are destined for China.

Nathan Argent, a Greenpeace forests campaigner chained to the plywood, said: "The Government must ban this criminal trade immediately.

"The Government have known about this problem for years and they've done absolutely nothing about it. We were easily able to pick this illegal timber off the shelf of a builders' merchant, despite the fact that it's been illegally logged and bears the stench of human rights abuses.

"There are perfectly good alternatives to this timber. Buy timber certified by the Forest Stewardship Council - it's the best way to guarantee that timber has come from environmentally and socially responsible sources."

News Update
Police using bolt cutters removed the two Greenpeace volunteers who were chained to the tonne of illegal rainforest plywood at 11.30 this morning. The plywood is still blocking the entrance to the building. No arrests were made.

At noon Greenpeace forest campaigners had a meeting with environment minister Eliot Morley at the QE2 centre in Westminster. Eliot Morley said he was happy to go record calling for a ban on the import of illegally logged timber. Greenpeace called on him to take tough action at a European and domestic level.

Further information

Contact the Greenpeace press office on 020 7865 8255.

Download the latest Greenpeace report, Partners in Crime: The UK timber trade, Chinese sweatshops and Malaysian robber barons in Papua New Guinea's rainforests (PDF format).

A present for the Finnish PM: woodchips made from ancient reindeer forests

Greenpeace activists in Rome today appealed to the Finnish Prime Minister to save the Sàmi reindeer forests in Northern Finland . The activists unfurled a banner - Stop Trashing Sàmi Reindeer Forests - at the UN headquarters of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Wood chips were deposited in front of the building to highlight the fact that the Finnish government is turning the reindeer forests into wood chips for pulp and paper production.

The Prime Minister of Finland, Matti Vanhanen, is visiting Rome to open a Finnish Forestry Room in the FAO building. The government claims that the meeting room "represents an important aspect of their national culture."

"Whilst the Finnish Prime Minister travels abroad to celebrate its national culture, his government back home has been busy making money from destroying the livelihood of Sàmi reindeer herders," said Matti Liimatainen, Greenpeace forests campaigner. "Traditional free-grazing reindeer herding forms the basis of Sàmi indigenous culture, but its future hangs in the balance as the government refuses to seek a long-term solution in the issue."

Through the state-owned forest company Metsähallitus, the Finnish government has been logging in important reindeer grazing areas to supply Finnish pulp mills with cheap raw materials (1). In 2003 the reindeer herders together with Greenpeace and the Finnish Association for Nature Conservation (FANC) mapped out forest areas essential for winter grazing. Over 90% of the mapped forest areas were found to be old-growth forest.

"Speaking from Rome, Ms Sini Harkki from FANC said: "It is time for the Finnish government to live up to its national and international responsibilities and protect Lapland's old growth forests and the rights of the Sàmi to practise traditional reindeer herding. If this issue continues to be ignored, the future of traditional free-grazing reindeer herding remains uncertain. We can not let this happen.""

This activity follows a similar protest outside the UN venue Palais de Nations in Geneva yesterday. During the UN Human Rights Commission's 61st session, Mr Erkki Tuomioja, Minister of Foreign Affairs, gave a speech stating that Finland's objectives for its term of membership in the UN Human Rights Commission is to prevent discrimination of minorities and indigenous peoples. However, the Finnish government was recent criticised by the UN Human Rights Committee for discriminating against the rights of the Sàmi as indigenous people. (2)

At the beginning of March, Greenpeace established a Forest Rescue Station in one of the threatened reindeer forest areas to highlight the ongoing destruction by Metsauml;hallitus, the Finnish government's logging company and those paper companies that continue to buy this destruction (3)

Contacts:
Matti Liimatainen, Greenpeace Nordic (Lapland) + 358 400 346 329
Phil Aikman Greenpeace International (London) + 44 7801 212995
Mikael Sjövall, Greenpeace Nordic (Helsinki) + 358 50 3696 202
Sini Harkki (FANC, Rome) + 358 50 582 1107

Notes to editor:
1. Up to 90% of Metsauml;hallitus's turnover comes from the sale of timber. The Finnish State is also the single largest shareholder in the main company that buys pulp logs coming from these areas, owning nearly one quarter of the voting shares in the Finnish-Swedish paper giant StoraEnso.
2. UN Human Rights Committee (November 2004):
"....regrets that it has not received a clear answer concerning the rights of the Sàmi as an indigenous people (Constitution, sect. 17, subsect. 3), in the light of article 1 of the Covenant. It reiterates its concern over the failure to settle the question of Sàmi rights to land ownership and the various public and private uses of land that affect the Sàmi's traditional means of subsistence - in particular reindeer breeding - thus endangering their traditional culture and way of life, and hence their identity."
"The State party should, in conjunction with the Sàmi people, swiftly take decisive action to arrive at an appropriate solution to the land dispute with due regard for the need to preserve the Sàmi identity in accordance with article 27 of the Covenant. Meanwhile it is requested to refrain from any action that might adversely prejudice settlement of the issue of Sàmi land rights. "
3. A weblog documenting the activities of the Forest Rescue Station can be seen at: weblog.greenpeace.org/forestrescue/