Brussels — The European Parliament today backed a 12-month delay for the EU's landmark anti-deforestation law, which would see new rules to prevent imports and exports of commodities grown on deforested land come into effect at the end of 2025.
MEPs also proposed major new loopholes which will severely undermine its ability to protect forests, according to Global Witness.
The proposed delay could drive at least 150,385 hectares of deforestation linked to EU trade, an area more than fourteen times the size of Paris, according to Global Witness analysis.
New EPP-led amendments agreed today would allow exporting countries to be classified as "no risk" - meaning companies importing from these countries would not need to do any due diligence. This would create a loophole that would allow 'high risk' products grown on deforested land to be exported via countries with 'no risk' status without any checks.
Giulia Bondi, senior EU forests campaigner at Global Witness said:
"Every day this vital forest protection law is delayed is a day we can't afford. The world is losing climate-critical forests at a frightening rate, as climate-linked extreme weather becomes ever deadlier and more destructive in the EU and across the world. It's a deeply worrying sign that national governments and parliamentarians are pushing to riddle this law with loopholes and delay it rather than speed it up, so we're calling on the EU Commission to withdraw the delay and get the law back on track to enter into force this January."
Following today's vote, the European Commission can withdraw its proposed 12-month delay to the law, meaning it would enter into force in January 2025. If the Commission does not withdraw the proposal, the Parliament, Council and Commission will renegotiate the law.
The EU Deforestation Regulation, agreed in December 2022, is designed to prevent imports and exports of a comprehensive list of products linked to deforestation and forest degradation, including coffee, timber, palm oil, cattle, soy, rubber and cocoa, as well as products derived from them.
