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Environmental legislation within the timber and timber products industry operates at two levels. Legislation exists to regulate the business and its operations and legislation also exists to regulate the timber and timber products.
This section does not refer to British standards but if you would like more information please contact the Timber Trade Federation on ttf@ttf.co.uk.
Business and operations
As an employer and manager of processing operations the timber industry must comply with UK environmental legislation. The most important legislation includes:
- Environmental Protection Act 1990
- Pollution Prevention and Control Act 1999
The main topics within this legislation refer to:
For a discussion on how this legislation may affect your business please contact Forests Forever 020 7291 5377 or ajroby@ttf.co.uk.
Timber and timber products
Packaging Waste
The Single Market provisions of the EC Directive on Packaging and Packaging Waste 94/62/EC are implemented through the Packaging (Essential Requirement) Regulations 1998. Any business with a turnover of more that £2,000,000 AND handling more than 50 tonnes of packaging in a year is likely to be affected by the Regulations.
The Regulations give substance to ‘Producer Responsibility’ which is an extension of the polluter pays principle, and is aimed at ensuring that businesses take responsibility for the products they have placed on the market once these products have reached the end of their life.
The timber industry comes under these Regulations as it works within the ‘Packaging Chain’. This consists of four main stages namely those who;
- Manufacture raw materials for packaging
- Convert raw materials into packaging
- Pack and fill packaging, or use packaging to wrap goods
- Sell packaging to the final user
To carry out their obligations companies may either register individually with an Agency and take the necessary steps themselves; or they may join a registered compliance scheme, which will carry out their obligations for them.
To find out more contact Nick Boulton, Timber Trade Federation at nboulton@ttf.co.uk or 020 7291 5378 or for a useful list of contacts and information look at the following website: www.environment-agency.gov.uk/commondata/105385/packwastegeninfo2003_511591.pdf.
CITES
The ‘Washington’ Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) aims to protect certain plants and animals by regulating and monitoring their international trade to prevent it reaching unsustainable levels.
The UK Government strongly supports CITES as an essential instrument for helping to safeguard species, which are threatened by international trade. The Global Wildlife Division of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) is the UK CITES Management Authority.
CITES regulates international trade in over 30,000 species, of which approximately 25,000 are plants. These species are listed in three appendices.
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Appendix I includes species that may be threatened with extinction and which are or may be affected by international trade. International trade in wild specimens of these species is subject to strict regulation and is normally only permitted in exceptional circumstances.
Appendix II includes species not considered to be under the same threat as those in Appendix I, but which may become so if trade is not regulated. International trade in these species is monitored through a licensing system to ensure that trade can be sustained without detriment to wild populations. Examples include mahogany from Brazil.
Appendix III contains species that are not necessarily threatened on a global level, but that are protected within individual states where that state has sought the help of other CITES Parties to control international trade in that species. |
Click here to download the Appendices document (pdf)
When searching for a timber or timber product, the ttf website highlights if a timber appears on a CITES Appendix.
Full information on CITES can be found at www.ukcites.gov.uk
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