Forest Products: Trade Policy Highlights


What's New? \| Trade Data \| Country Reports \| Market News \| Trade Policy \| Publications \| Coming Events \| Helpful Links

	FOREST PRODUCTS TRADE POLICY HIGHLIGHTS - FEBRUARY 2006
	European Union Delays Debarking Requirement for Wood Packaging Material
	On February 6, 2006 the European Commission announced that it was amending its Directive 2000/29/EC to provide for a delay in the implementation of its debarking requirement for wood packaging materials until January 1, 2009. The debarking requirement was originally scheduled to enter into force on March 1, 2006. The European Commission Directive (as amended by Directive 2004/102/EC) contains a requirement that wood packaging material (WPM) be made from debarked wood - a phytosanitary measure intended to prevent the introduction of pests into the EU. The Directive notes that the European Commission has requested that the international standard for wood packaging material, ISPM-15, be reviewed by the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) addressing concerns of the European Commission about the presence of bark on wood packaging materials in international trade. The European Commission is expected to conduct a progress review by September 2007. Link to EU Official Journal Notice: http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/lex/LexUriServ/site/en/oj/2006/l_034/l_03420060207en00240025.pdf.
	G/SPS/N/EEC/221/Add.4
	EU-25 Trade Policy Monitoring EU Votes to Delay Debarking Requirement for Wood Packing Material

	United States Federal Agencies Sign Green Building Agreement
	On January 31, 2006, at the White House Summit on Federal Sustainable Buildings, the USDA, 15 other federal agencies, and the White House Council on Environmental Quality agreed to a joint commitment to designing and constructing sustainable buildings that achieve high energy performance. The agencies signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) saying they would strive to adopt a standard set of guiding principles for sustainable buildings by employing integrated design principles; optimizing energy performance, protecting and conserving water, enhancing indoor environmental quality, and reducing the environmental impact of the building materials. The agencies will aim to achieve the Energy Star targets for new construction and renovation and will also employ daylighting and incorporate biobased materials into their buildings. The federal government owns approximately 445,000 buildings with a total floor space of over 3 billion square feet, in addition to leasing 57,000 buildings comprising 374 million square feet of floor space. If federal buildings reduce energy by 10 percent, in 10 years taxpayers would save $420 million dollars and reduce greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those from more than 625,000 cars. The MOU specifically addresses, as part of its guiding principles toward reducing the environmental impact of materials, using biobased products made from rapidly renewable resources and certified sustainable wood products. However, the MOU is not legally enforceable and does not create any legal obligation on the part of any of the signatories to follow the guidelines. With regards to the use of certified sustainable wood products, the MOU is consistent with U.S. commitments toward sustainability and timber certification in other fora such as the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO). As a member of the ITTO, the United States has agreed to the principle that international organizations should not endorse, create or adopt, or be perceived to endorse, any particular certification approach or scheme, including any accompanying standards developed for the purpose of certification. For a copy of the Federal Leadership in High Performance and Sustainable Buildings Memorandum of Understanding, see: http://www.energystar.gov/ia/business/Guiding_Principles.pdf For further information please contact Tom Westcot (202-720-3331, Thomas.Westcot@fas.usda.gov).