Countries, businesses and trade officials urge EU to rethink deforestation regulation

abcnews.go.com:

A growing number of governments, international trade organizations and businesses are urging the European Union to reconsider a deforestation regulation set to take effect in December

JAKARTA, Indonesia — A growing number of governments, international trade organizations and businesses are urging the European Union to reconsider a deforestation regulation set to take effect in December.

Critics of the regulation say it will discriminate against countries with forest resources and hurt their exports. Supporters of the EU Deforestation Regulation, or EUDR for short, say it will help combat forest degradation on a global scale.

Several commodity associations have said they support the objectives of the regulation but that gaps in its implementation could harm their businesses.

Environmental organizations have voiced support, saying the EUDR will help slow global deforestation, which is the second-biggest source of carbon emissions after fossil fuels.

Here's a look at the EU Deforestation Regulation:

Starting on Dec. 30, the EU Deforestation Regulation will outlaw the sale of forest-derived products within the 27-nation bloc if companies can’t prove their goods are not linked to deforestation. Its scope is wide, including cocoa, coffee, soy, cattle, palm oil, rubber, wood and products derived from these commodities.

To sell those products in Europe big companies will have to prove they come from land where forests haven’t been cut since Jan. 1, 2021, regardless of whether the deforestation was legal in the countries of origin. Small businesses further down the supply chain are subject to the same obligations and retain legal responsibility if regulations are violated. But they are not liable for due diligence for parts