| As worry continues over a decision by a major United Kingdom buyer to stop procuring Guyana’s Greenheart lumber, Government and the private sector have announced collaborative efforts to have it reversed.Yesterday, Minister of Natural Resources, Raphael Trotman; and Minister of Business, Dominic Gaskin; met with representatives of the private sector and stakeholders of the logging industry to tackle the issue.The restrictions, which have cut exports of wood products to UK by almost 65 percent, since the May 2015 advisory by the Environment Agency (EA), has been engaging Government and stakeholders, it was disclosed yesterday. EA is one of UK’s biggest buyers of lumber for state projects in that country.Greenheart was until a year ago widely used in sea defense projects by UK contractors.The matter came to the fore last Thursday at Pegasus Hotel during a key international seminar on European Union Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade (EU-FLEGT) which is looking to establish measures to ensure that timber is harvested in compliance with the country’s laws and regulations.Following a packed meeting yesterday in the Waterloo Street boardroom of the Private Sector Commission (PSC), officials disclosed that the matter will engage talks at the diplomatic level, among other things.It will also involve a clear message to the world that that country’s logging practices are above board, the Government ministers insisted.According Minister Gaskin, the issue is indeed a troubling one that should be of concern to all Guyanese.Greenheart, he stressed, is part of the “Guyanese identity” with the current procurement restrictions harming exports and local production.The restrictions are not only prejudicial to Greenheart, a timber that is only found in Guyana, but also to the entire country.Minister Trotman made it clear that the issue is of concern to Government with the focus on finding solutions now.According to the Minister, Guyana’s systems of monitoring and verification to ensure logging is done in a sustainable and legal manner have been tested and proven overtime.It is a standard that is not only recognised by the current EU-FLEGT negotiations but by Norway, which has a US$250M agreement with Guyana for the protection of the forests here. More than US$100M has been paid out, after intense checks were carried out by inspectors to ensure that deforestation levels are kept at manageable levels and that logging is conducted in a sustainable and legal manner.The main concern, Trotman said, is to ensure that Guyana’s reputation is kept intact where forestry activities are concerned.According to senior executive of the Private Sector Commission (PSC), Ramesh Dookhoo, work is currently underway to develop a plan of action.Guyana will engage its High Commissioner to UK, Hamley Case, who has intense knowledge of the country’s forestry sector.He too noted, that matter has implications for the country and its stakeholders.President of the Forest Products Association of Guyana, Ricky Ramsaroop, said that the issue is a troubling one. It has badly affected loggers and will impact the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) this year.He stressed that Environmental Agency clearly has little idea of how Guyana manages its forests.He argued that Norway, the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) and Low Carbon Development Strategy, among other things, have proven overtime that there are ample monitoring systems in place to ensure the legality and sustainability of Guyana’s timbers.According to Mohindra Chand, General Manager of Barama Company Limited,Stitched Jerseys, who also chairs a key forestry committee of the Private Sector Commission, Greenheart production was 18 percent of the 300,372 m3 of the log production last year.Over the last four years, Greenheart exports were a massive US$27M.Chand explained that EA last year issued an advisory to its state contractors warning that Greenheart (from Guyana) is not currently available from Category ‘A’ certified- which means its sources are legal and sustainable.EA also made it clear that there is currently insufficient Category ‘B’ evidence (based on UK Government requirements) to prove it is from sustainably managed forests, though there is adequate evidence to prove legality.EA said, “A decision has been made that we will apply the timber procurement policy rigorously and that we will only buy timber from legal and sustainable sources. This currently prohibits the purchase of new Greenheart’ (from Guyana) as it does not have sufficient evidence (based on UK Government requirements) that the forests of origin are sustainably managed.”The impact, Chand said, saw Guyana’s Greenheart exports nose-diving last year from US$3.2M in 2014 to US$1.1M last year. This represents a massive 65% decline.The matter became more significant in light of the fact that in 2014, prior to the EA announcement, Greenheart was more than 90 percent of the forestry exports to the UK.According to Chand, the restrictions by EA would come after Guyana gained a significant foothold into UK’s market in 2012.In effect, the EA decision has tarnished Guyana’s reputation and could impact investments in the forestry sector.Already, the impact on logging activities is being felt, with jobs and markets affected.Not only is foreign exchange earnings affected, but also the lives of thousands of Indigenous persons have been impacted.EA did not consult with Guyana on the issue, he said.Timber represents a major export earner for Guyana, last year totaling US$45.6M, compared to the US$54.1M in 2014.Present at the meeting yesterday were Chairperson of the Guyana Forestry Commission (GFC), Joycelyn Dow, Commissioner James Singh, several prominent loggers, including Toolsie Persaud, and a buyer from the UK. |
