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Borderlines – Timber Smuggling in the Mekong Region

Explore the rampant timber smuggling in the Mekong region affecting Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, and Cambodia, and delve into the significant forest loss, logging controls, and implications for the furniture industry. Discover the realities of illegal logging, the impact on local communities, and the urgent need for sustainable solutions.

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Borderlines – Timber Smuggling in the Mekong Region

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  1. Borderlines – Timber Smuggling in the Mekong Region

  2. Mekong Region: • Vietnam, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia • Significant forest loss • Logging controls in Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia • Main wood processing centres Vietnam and Thailand • History of illegal logging and timber smuggling

  3. Vietnam • Rapid growth of furniture industry; exports worth $2.4 bn 2007, tenfold increase in seven years • Main export markets US 39%, Japan 14%, UK 7% • Heavy reliance on imported raw materials • Progress on certified timber; eucalyptus, teak • Illegal timber remains a problem; balau, keruing

  4. Indonesian logs, Haiphong 2003

  5. Laos • Rural population 80%, many dependent of forests • Forest cover 40% and falling • Series of forestry laws, enforcement weak • Log export ban, designated production areas, consultation with local communities • Plan to grow domestic wood processing; many infrastructure projects, dams

  6. EIA Findings • Widespread use of Laos balau/keruing in Vietnamese outdoor furniture factories • Vietnamese logging firms active in Laos • Estimate around 500,000 cbm Laos logs enter Vietnam a year • Most of logs used domestically, some exported • Some factories source directly, others buy locally • Thai businessmen involved in Laos logging

  7. Central Laos

  8. Central Laos

  9. Naphao, Laos-Vietnam Border

  10. Naphao, Laos-Vietnam Border

  11. Laos balau logs, Qui Nhon

  12. Laos balau logs, Hanoi

  13. Laos logs, Vinh Port

  14. Thai Connection

  15. Thai Connection

  16. Final Thoughts • Consumers share responsibility – due care • Misleading claims by retailers • Need for dialogue Vietnam-Laos • Vietnam needs to tackle high risk species • EU-Vietnam dialogue on FLEGT • New controls on illegal timber in US

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