The Southern Lumber Exporters Association (SLEA) invited Eric Gee, executive director of the Southern Forest Products Association, to speak at their annual meeting in Spanish Fort, AL, on September 5 regarding the potential impacts of the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) on Southern Pine exports.
The request resulted from exporters’ growing concerns about how to comply with the EUDR. One of the primary objections to the EUDR is the requirement for lumber shipments into (and within) the EU to include geolocation information – specific polygon coordinates of the timber stand(s) from which the fiber originated so it can be verified the forest was not converted into another land use.
The issue has drawn attention from high levels within the U.S. government, and SFPA has provided input and comments through the Industry Trade Advisory Council (ITAC), which advises the Commerce Department on trade issues. Other government agencies, including the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service and the Secretary of State also are engaged. However, EU politicians have discounted appeals to delay the enforcement of the EUDR, scheduled for December 31, 2024, and a pause to the EUDR does not seem likely at this time.
It remains to be seen how EUDR compliance will look, as there has been no guidance from the EU about how geolocation information will be transmitted with shipments. Gee has spoken to both the Southern Pine Inspection Bureau and Timber Products Inspection to see if their current grading/reporting systems might be adaptable to include geolocation information or if they thought geolocation tracking was a service they could include. Neither felt it was a space that they could currently fill. The Sustainable Forestry Initiative, the American Forest and Paper Association, and ASTM International are independently developing standards for compliance.
Last year, the value of Southern Pine exports to Europe (EU-27 and UK) was about $12 million, shared almost equally between treated and bright lumber. Shipments have been down since 2021. As the enforcement deadline approaches, SFPA will continue to provide input, monitor, and report on EUDR developments and impacts on Southern Pine exports.
SFPA members can review the complete report under meetings and presentations on the members-only section of SouthernPine.com.