Hardwood Matters - National Hardwood Lumber Association

GREEN WAVEFURNITURE, MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS MUST NOW DECLAREBASIC INFORMATION UNDER U.S. LACEY ACTApril 1, 2010 marks the beginning of enforcement for basic information transparencyrequirements under the Lacey Act for guitars, revolvers, hand tools, pool cues and certain types offurniture. The U.S. Lacey Act, amended in May 2008, makes it a federal crime to trade in illegalwood products. Under a phased-in process, many sectors also have to declare the scientific nameand the country of harvest for any plant constituents of their imported products.Other wood product sectors, including those importing sawn timber, flooring, and joinery havebeen declaring this information to the U.S. government for nearly a year. Now, an importer ofchairs manufactured in Vietnam will declare, for example, that the wooden frame is made ofteak (Tectona grandis) from Thailand. Importers of billiards equipment might declare that thecocobolo in pool cues (Dalbergia retusa) is from Nicaragua.This information – collected by USDA’s APHIS – will allow the implementing agencies to targetenforcement actions and better understand how the U.S. market demand for wood products isaffecting forests worldwide.The declaration form can be found on the APHIS website. Importers must print and mail it toAPHIS or submit the information electronically via an automated broker interface. It is expectedthat an electronic interface will become publicly available in the future as the U.S. governmentcontinues to refine its implementation of the Lacey Act.For a full list of sectors included in the April 1 phase-in, visit the APHIS website(www.aphis.usda.gov/plant_health/lacey_act/index.shtml).DOVETAIL PARTNERS INC. UPDATES 2004 STUDY –FOREST CERTIFICATION: A STATUS REPORTIn September 2004, Dovetail Partners, Inc. released the report “A Land Manager’s Guide to FSC & SFI: To Certifyor Not To Certify, Is That a Question?” Over the past six years, this report has been directly downloaded thousandsof times from the Dovetail website as well as being uploaded and made available through other organizations.Six years later, the original study has been updated and is now available for review. The 2010 report reviews thecurrent status of forest certification programs, summarizes changes that have occurred over the past six years andspeculates on what the future may bring in terms of opportunities and challenges. This report examines the NorthAmerican context with some limited global references and with particular attention paid to programs of the ForestStewardship Council (FSC) and Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI). Information is also provided regardingthe American Tree Farm System (ATFS) of the American Forest Foundation (AFF), the Canadian StandardsAssociation (CSA) and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification schemes (PEFC).To view or download the complete report visit www.dovetailinc.org.18 MAY 2010 HARDWOOD MATTERS WWW.NHLA.COM