The timber industry doesn’t sing loud enough about its achievements. This was the message from Forestry Commission chairman Lord Clark of Windermere, guest speaker at the Timber Trade Federation‘s international and UK suppliers division annual lunch last week.
Commenting on the timber industry’s landmark achievements, Lord Clark said that if these had been matched by other industries, the country would be a better place.
Huge progress had been made, he said, and the partnership between the UK and the imported trade was a valuable one: ‘There are huge areas of common interest which we need to build on and the TTF plays a key role in this’.
In praising the wood. for good campaign, Lord Clark paid tribute to the Nordic Timber Council for providing finance for the campaign and for forming ‘a partnership which is beginning to pay dividends. We have a common interest to re-establish the wood-using culture in Britain,’ he said.
‘It is a three-year campaign, but we mustn’t lose it – we must continue to promote the fact that wood is good,’ he added. ‘A link with this campaign and its services can bring great benefits [to businesses].
‘The government is committed to sourcing products from legally, sustainably managed sources. That’s what our citizens want,’ he said. ‘The Worldwide Fund for Nature awarded the Gift of the Earth to the Forestry Commission last year (TTJ December 15/22, 2001), which was the first state forest service ever to receive it, so we are judged to be sustainable in our state forest system.
‘In addition, as a major importer of timber, the UK can make a great difference worldwide. The recent Greenpeace action has shown that it is very important that timber is sourced from sustainable sources, but also that we have the documentation to prove it.
‘Illegal logging damages more than the environment – it lines the pockets of criminals at the expense of honest businesses and tars the whole industry with the same brush.’
However, he added, the TTF’s new Code of Conduct would show the world that the UK was serious about the issue. ‘In the commercial sector I believe we can take the lead and set the scene,’ he concluded.
