00:00Can the products we buy such a hot chocolate drink and the service we use affect the survival
00:20of rainforests?
00:21Do you think so?
00:23The new deforestation law requires businesses to prove that the manufacturing process and
00:28supply chains are not responsible for destruction of forests.
00:33But some companies complain about the red tape and costs involved so the rules have
00:38been delayed.
00:39This week EU Decoded untangles the controversy.
00:44Rainforests are crucial for climate stability, especially in the tropics of South America,
00:48Africa and Asia.
00:50But in the last three decades, 420 million hectares have been destroyed, an area slightly
00:56larger than that of the EU.
00:58That land was used for extraction of materials and agriculture.
01:02With the new law, cattle, cocoa, coffee, palm oil, soybeans, wood, rubber, coal and paper
01:09will be affected.
01:11These products will only be sold on the EU market if they're not linked to land deforested
01:15after 2021.
01:18Under the deforestation law, companies will have to monitor supply chains and some products
01:24may become more expensive.
01:26What do consumers think of this trade-off?
01:54Grégoire Lorry has been covering this controversial law for Euronews and can give more details.
02:25The deforestation law was due to be implemented by Member States already from December 30th.
02:31So why did the Commission recently ask to postpone it for one year?
02:36There has been calls and worries from different parts growing, especially over the summer.
02:44So calls from Member States, from third countries, from companies, operators, traders.
02:49They were highlighting either loopholes or practical details that were unanswered, for
02:56some maybe geopolitical reasons.
02:59The governments in the 27 EU countries agreed with this postponement, but then when the
03:05vote took place in the European Parliament on November 14th, the law was changed again.
03:11Who wanted those changes?
03:13That was the EPP.
03:14Which is a bit strange because the EPP had the rapporteur on the previous deregulation
03:19so it means that the EPP has changed a bit its position.
03:22But it's not only the EPP, it's the EPP with the support of the far-right.
03:27So it's a new kind of majority that took part in this text.
03:34The EPP said that the former text was too bureaucratic with too stringent rules.
03:42And they got the votes with the help of the far-right in this case, which also was kind
03:46of a provocation to the Greens and the Socialists that have been trying to build a consensus.
03:53Indeed, and it's interesting to follow because it's a majority EPP centre-right with the
04:00far-right that has decided to water down the text.
04:04And it is a different majority that had supported von der Leyen a few weeks before that was
04:09a majority with Renew, the Greens and the Social Democrats.
04:13So what comes next in terms of negotiations?
04:16Well, either the text goes through the usual institutional process, so the text has to
04:23be endorsed by the Council, representing the Member States, and by the Parliament.
04:29However, some parties within the Parliament, like the Social Democrats or the Greens, are
04:35calling the Commission to withdraw its proposal to postpone the implementation.
04:41And the left also is asking for the vote to be redone because there were technical
04:46issues during the vote.
04:48Once the law comes into force, both producers and import-export companies must put in place
04:54a monitoring system.
04:56Member States will make inspections and fines worth up to 4% of a company's turnover could
05:01be imposed.
05:02The European Commission will also define countries as having a low, standard or high risk of
05:07deforestation.
05:08But the European Parliament has voted to add a new no-risk category that would exempt countries'
05:13enforcement.
05:14With us at the European Parliament is Anna Cavazzini, Chair of the Committee on Internal
05:20Market and Consumer Protection.
05:22So the deforestation law is another part of the Green Deal that has become highly politicized
05:28and somehow put on ice.
05:31Is the credibility of the European Union as a decision-maker at stake here?
05:36Yes, I find highly problematic what happened because indeed we're passing laws, companies
05:43are getting prepared for it, citizens are getting prepared for it and then all of a
05:47sudden we say, ah yeah, we want to weaken the law again or we want to postpone the law
05:50again and I think this creates more chaos and indeed threatens the EU as a credible
05:57decision-maker.
05:58Some industry sectors are highly critical of it, while others want a law as soon as
06:04possible.
06:05How do we explain this?
06:06There is a lot of companies who also already in the past committed to zero deforestation
06:12because they know that it's really, really difficult if we destroy our whole biodiversity.
06:17If the EU with our imports, we also continue destroying forests in the world.
06:22But there is also lobby pressure, there is companies who don't want to change or who
06:26say, okay every change I have to do in my company policy is new bureaucracy.
06:31Of course at the beginning there is new bureaucracy, you have to introduce new measures but I think
06:35after a year when you really introduce new mechanisms it will be much easier and then
06:41you also have a clear supply chain and then you can easily obey to the law, comply with
06:47the law.
06:48The USA, Brazil and Indonesia criticise the law while other markets hope to beneficiate.
06:55How important are the third country studies law?
07:00Of course we don't know what happens to Trump but the current US government was never against
07:04the law, they just wanted the postponement.
07:06If you speak to different stakeholders in Brazil, you know I'm a lot in contact with
07:10environmental NGOs, with indigenous communities and those who really protect the forest and
07:15they like the law, they find it really, really important.
07:17If you talk to the agri-industry of course in Brazil, they are not so happy about the
07:21law so you also have to specify a little bit whom you talk to but of course it's important
07:25to reach out to third countries, it's important to not make laws against them but include
07:29them in the legislation, in the law making process and I think this we have to probably
07:33do better next time.
07:35Our consumption in Europe is set to contributing 10% to global deforestation, in turn this
07:42has been linked to climate change with natural disasters becoming increasingly more common
07:47everywhere.
07:49At what pace should we move forward to reverse the situation and are we willing to pay the
07:54price?
07:55I'll be back next week for more EU decoding.
Comments