Govt changes mind on sustainability of Malaysian timber, but not far enough

Read Lianne Dalziel's letter to Russel and Jeanette (PDF, 135KB).

The Green Party is welcoming the decision by the Minister of Commerce Lianne Dalziel to exclude timber products certified by the Malaysian Timber Certification Council (MTCC) from the government's new sustainable procurement policy.

This decision follows Green Party interventions to point out that MTCC certified timber is neither sustainable nor even legal in most circumstances.

But the Greens are urging the government to entirely stop the use of all tropical timber in government projects because of the difficulty in ensuring that any of it is sustainable and legal.

"I welcome the correction to the sustainable government procurement policy issued by the Minister making it clear that timber certified by MTCC does not meet standards of sustainability or legality," says Green Co-Leader Dr. Russel Norman.

"However I would urge the Minister to follow the example of the Norwegian Government which just two months ago decided to stop the use of any tropical timber in government projects because of the difficulties in determining if any tropical timber is legal and sustainable.

"In the last few days reports have been emerging that MTCC certified timber is being taken from forests in Sarawak against wishes of the indigenous Penan people who have lived in the forest for many generations. The Penan have established road blocks to try to stop the Malaysian timber companies Rimbunan Hijau and Samling taking the logs out of their ancestral forests.

"Illegal and unsustainable logging of tropical forests is resulting in the rapid loss of these unique biodiversity hotspots, the dislocation of the indigenous people that have lived off the forests for generations, and the release of greenhouse emissions. Twenty percent of all greenhouse emissions are due to deforestation."