No EU deforestation rules enforced until 2026 – lawyers react to “collective act of self-sabotage”
Members of the European Parliament today voted through the Commission’s recent proposal to delay the EU’s flagship anti-deforestation law by 12 months - a major setback for the world’s forests and the global fight to hold back the climate crisis.
ClientEarth lawyer Michael Rice said:
“Today’s outcome is an embarrassing confirmation of the EU’s collective failure to take the urgency of global deforestation seriously and to follow and enforce its own laws. The deforestation law has been years in the making and was adopted over 18 months ago after more than a year of negotiations – there was more than enough time to prepare for it.
“This is a collective act of self-sabotage and a terrible signal to the world – just as world’s leaders meet in Azerbaijan to build on climate commitments. We cannot hit pause on the climate crisis – the effects of which are already being severely felt in the EU through floods, forest fires and droughts. We cannot afford for EU consumption to continue fuelling the destruction of the world’s forests for another day, let alone another year.
“The delay also run counter to the expectations of those companies that are ready to comply with the law and have already made significant investments to do so – many of whom spoke out in favour of the EUDR in the run-up to today’s vote. This delay could undermine business confidence in the EU’s ability to provide a stable regulatory environment that is so important for EU competitiveness.”
In last-minute negotiations and following a huge outcry from civil society, businesses and investors to keep the current start date and not to tamper with the law, the European People’s Party withdrew a number of proposed changes, but a proposal to create a new “no risk” category for the Commission’s country benchmarking exercise was adopted by a small majority. This effectively means that the rules will not apply to products from some countries.
ClientEarth lawyers argue that this legal change - if agreed by Member States and implemented - would undermine the very foundation of the law, defeating the purpose of its product traceability system, and make monitoring and enforcement practically impossible for Member States. It also creates significant potential for circumvention, risks rendering the law inconsistent with WTO requirements and could needlessly draw the Commission into disputes with global trading partners.
Rice said:
“The proposed ‘no risk’ category and the detail behind it makes no sense, risks undermining the entirety of the law, and should be rejected by the Council.
“We repeat our call to the Commission to withdraw its proposal to delay the deforestation law. Urgent action is needed now - every single day counts in the climate fight, and another year of EU-approved deforestation is not an option.”
