WWF: Finland EU's Biggest Importer of Illegal Timber
Image: YLE
The WWF accuses Finland of being one of the European Union's biggest importers of illegally felled timber. Most of the illegal wood comes from Russia, Indonesia and China.
According to the WWF, nearly 20 percent of timber imported into the EU is illegally cut. Illegal loggers bypass proper environmental controls, don't participate in re-growing forests, sometimes cut endangered tree species and often don't pay taxes to the country the trees are taken from.
Trade in illegal timber also forces the price of legitimate wood down.
The WWF says that in 2006, 10.4 million cubic metres of illegal or suspect timber was exported from Russia, and nearly half of this passed through Finnish mills.
Beginning in the autumn, all timber imported into the EU must have a certificate stating that they came from legal logging practices.
YLE