According to a new report from Global Witness, a London-based natural resources corruption watchdog group, new campaigns against illegal logging, like the EU Timber Regulations (EUTR), are merely forcing unscrupulous corporations and politicians to get creative.
Focused on the African nations of Liberia, Ghana, Cameroon, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, all of which have Voluntary Partnership Agreements (VPAs) with the EU under the EUTR, the report discusses how large corporations are using "shadow permits" to continue their illegal trade. These Artisanal Logging Permits, Small Titles, and Private Use Permits are meant for small-scale harvesters, but government officials give them to multi-national industrial companies.
Global Witness recommends importers exercise due diligence, even on timber that comes with a permit, and says that producer and importer governments need to make permit allocation more transparent, making all permits, their location, area, social agreements, contract documents, production, tax liability, and other payments or arrears public on the web.
The full report, "Logging in the Shadows," is available here.
