The Furniture Producers Association (Fordaq) and the Federation of Forest and Pasture Owners of Romania (Nostra Silva), in a press release issued on November 15, claim that the figure of 20 million cubic meters of wood “illegally cut” in Romania, circulated by local and international media with no indication of the source of the estimate, is not correct, Agerpres reported.

The figure originates from a report drafted by research institute INCDS Marin Dracea for the Ministry of Waters and Forests, the National Forestry Inventory (IFN), but the two organisations argue that the research itself has a complex methodology and furthermore fails to provide a complete picture.

The two organisations claim that the measures taken in 2013  against illegal logging have generated positive effects.

The drastic reduction of timber from illegal logging was noted in the import / export flows.

From exports of about 2 million cubic meters of timber and 400,000 cubic meters of logs in 2013, there has been a decrease of the timber exports to 0.7 million cubic meters during 2017-2018.

The exports of logs almost disappeared and imports of almost 3 million cubic meters of softwood equivalent in 2018 were reached.

(Photo: Pixabay)

editor@romania-insider.com