“Mejora Continua” de Prácticas Ilegales en el Sector Forestal del Perú

This report by the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) investigates the systemic use of official documents to mask the illegal origin of timber exported from the Peruvian Amazon in 2015. By analyzing 855 inspection reports and 2,364 Forest Transport Guides (GTF), the study reveals that exporters frequently exploit gaps in supervision and target markets with weak legality regulations to move high-risk timber.

• A significant portion of timber exports from Peru are high-risk or illegal, with an analysis of 791 supervised Forest Management Plans (PMF) showing that 51% are on the "red list" (high risk) of the SIGOSFC observatory.
• Export companies appear to strategically select destinations based on the strictness of legality laws; high-risk "red list" timber is predominantly sent to Mexico (75%) and China (71%), while "green list" timber is directed toward the US (72%) and France (91%).
• Six companies concentrate over 50% of the GTFs used for global exports, with Maderera Bozovich SAC ranking first, followed by Inversiones La Oroza SAC, Peruvian Flooring SAC, Inversiones Técnicas Maderables SAC, Consorcio Maderero SAC, and Maderera Rio Acre SAC.
• There is a systemic lack of supervision and transparency in the supply chain: 48% of the analyzed PMFs were not supervised by OSINFOR, and 18% of GTFs failed to indicate the 'zafra' (annual harvest period), making it impossible to determine the legal status of the wood.
• The report identifies a shift in the modalities used to mask illegal logging, with an increase in the use of Forest Permits in Native Communities and Local Forests. Local Forests are noted for having a high rate of fraudulent documentation, with 96% of supervised cases in this modality appearing on the "red list".
• The report details a "continuous improvement" of illegal practices used to evade transparency, including: using documentation from areas not subject to OSINFOR supervision, using permits from private estates not delivered to OSINFOR, utilizing unsupervised PMFs from high-risk titles, and omitting critical harvest data from GTFs.
• Native communities are disproportionately harmed by these illegal activities, as they are often exploited through unfair trade systems ('enganche') and left to face legal sanctions and unpayable fines when the responsible companies disappear.
• Despite international agreements like the US-Peru Trade Promotion Agreement and the Lacey Act, illegal timber trade persists due to weak implementation and insufficient budgets for competent state entities.

APA

Gómez, R. N., & Sky, M. B. (2017). “Mejora Continua” de Prácticas Ilegales en el Sector Forestal del Perú. Center for International Environmental Law. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/CentroReportV15.pdf

Chicago

Gómez, Rolando Navarro, and Melissa Blue Sky. “Mejora Continua” de Prácticas Ilegales en el Sector Forestal del Perú. Center for International Environmental Law, 2017. https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/CentroReportV15.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Gómez |first1=Rolando Navarro |last2=Sky |first2=Melissa Blue |title=“Mejora Continua” de Prácticas Ilegales en el Sector Forestal del Perú |publisher=Center for International Environmental Law |date=2017 |url=https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/CentroReportV15.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{gmez2017mejora, author = {Gómez, Rolando Navarro and Sky, Melissa Blue}, title = {{“Mejora Continua” de Prácticas Ilegales en el Sector Forestal del Perú}}, institution = {Center for International Environmental Law}, year = {2017}, url = {https://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/CentroReportV15.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }