NEWS

From which national forest is this year’s U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree?

Answer: This year, the tree will come from the Tongass National Forest—America's largest national forest. Previously, the only other U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree to come from Alaska was sent from the Chugach National Forest in 2015.

PHOTO © USFS

Experts spent a full year completing risk assessments for U.S. hardwoods to evaluate all aspects of legal compliance throughout the industry. A sophisticated framework was used to assess the level of risk of illegal activities present within supply chains, from point of harvest to point of export, across all 33 hardwood-producing states. Full reports for each state will be published in January.

PHOTO © TIMBER PRODUCTS COMPANY

The Forest Stewardship Council recently added 18 months to the time a Chinese bamboo plywood manufacturer is blocked from FSC certification. FSC stated that the manufacturer repeatedly made false claims on large volumes of bamboo plywood. The manufacturer was originally blocked in 2022 for making false claims.

We are still waiting for lawmakers to extend funding for farm bill programs before the end of the year. The farm bill includes financial support for forest management practices, export promotion programs, and incentives for landowners to maintain healthy forests. Those in the know are hopeful that a year-long extension will be attached to the continuing resolution that is currently under discussion.

The American Hardwood Export Council has intensified the process of developing a risk-based jurisdictional response to the EUDR over the last few months. Even though a one-year delay to the implementation of the law now seems inevitable, AHEC Europe has been pushing ahead with plans to deliver a risk-based mechanism for U.S. hardwoods that demonstrates their legality and the negligible risk of deforestation at the county level—throughout all 33 hardwood-producing states.