Sourcing Legally Produced Wood

This 2018 guide by the World Resources Institute helps businesses navigate the legal requirements for sourcing wood, focusing on the regulatory frameworks of the United States, Australia, and the European Union. It emphasizes that illegal logging drives forest degradation and greenhouse gas emissions, and distinguishes between legal and sustainable sourcing. The guide outlines the role of trade regulations, procurement policies, and certification services in mitigating the risk of illegal timber in supply chains.

• Combatting illegal logging is critical for several environmental and social goals, including the protection of biodiversity, the management of forests, the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, the promotion of economic development, and the improvement of governance. Illegal logging specifically acts as a direct cause of forest degradation and frequently contributes to deforestation.
• Major international markets have implemented regulatory frameworks to ensure timber legality: the United States' 2008 Lacey Act Amendment, Australia's 2012 Illegal Logging Prohibition Act (AILPA), and the European Union Timber Regulation (EUTR) of 2013. These laws mandate that businesses take active steps to ensure their forest products are legal.
• The guide distinguishes between legality and sustainability, noting that the two are not synonymous; a product that is sustainable may not be legal, and a legal product may not be sustainable.
• Beyond trade regulations, other mechanisms to address timber legality and sustainability include public procurement policies, which signal requirements to the private sector, and private procurement policies that integrate responsible sourcing into sustainability programs. Additionally, industry associations use codes of conduct and standards to encourage the removal of illegal timber.
• Businesses can use forest management certification and legality verification services to mitigate risk, though these do not guarantee legality. These systems often employ third-party verification and chain-of-custody criteria to trace products and separate verified products from nonverified ones.

APA

World Resources Institute (2018). Sourcing Legally Produced Wood. https://www.wri.org/research/sourcing-legally-produced-wood

Chicago

World Resources Institute. Sourcing Legally Produced Wood. 2018. https://www.wri.org/research/sourcing-legally-produced-wood.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Resources Institute |title=Sourcing Legally Produced Wood |date=2018 |url=https://www.wri.org/research/sourcing-legally-produced-wood |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldresourcesinstitute2018sourcing, author = {{World Resources Institute}}, title = {{Sourcing Legally Produced Wood}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, year = {2018}, url = {https://www.wri.org/research/sourcing-legally-produced-wood}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }