Setting Precedents

United States passes groundbreaking ban on illegal logging

It took years and a rare coalition of environmental groups, government agencies, and forest products manufacturers–including Dooge Veneers–to bring about a U.S. ban on illegally harvested wood. But this summer, it happened.

In June, Congress amended the Lacey Act, a long-standing wildlife trafficking statute, to include a U.S. ban on products made from illegally harvested wood. It’s a groundbreaking piece of legislation that will protect the world’s forests–and those who use them responsibly.

Before the ban, U.S. companies that bought wood and veneer from responsibly managed forests and reputable sources were often undercut by illegal loggers, at a cost of about $460 million a year in lost export sales, according to estimates from the American Forest and Paper Association.

“The ban on illegal logging levels the playing field, protecting the interests of legitimate operations and companies like ours that do business with environmentally responsible sources,” says Dooge president Henry Gignac. “What’s more, “Gignac adds, “the ban will protect dwindling forests, safeguard protected habitats, and support indigenous communities in some of the poorest countries around the world.”

With the U.S. ban as precedent, the pressure is on other nations around the world to similarly ban trade in illegal wood products.

Dooge Veneers is delighted with the new legislation and proud to have been a contributor to the Hardwood Forestry Fund, the Tropical Forest Foundation, and other wood industry associations that fought for and supported the ban.