The European Parliament approved a move to postpone a watered-down version of its anti-deforestation law, with implementation pushed back 12 months to the end of 2025. The Nov. 14 vote to delay the European Union Deforestation Regulation, or the EUDR, by a year was approved with a clear majority of 58%, with 371 votes in favor, 240 against and 30 abstentions. It drew mass support from the center-right European People’s Party (EPP) and the far right. Earlier in the day, an amendment introducing a “no-risk” category into the law was also approved, allowing the EU to decide in which countries the law will be enforced. The vague proposed criteria in the approved law suggest labeling countries as “no-risk” if they show a net increase in forest cover, even if the forest increase comes from expanding monoculture plantations like oil palm or eucalyptus for paper and pulp, said Trase, a platform that analyzes supply chains. Such monoculture commodities are frequently a driver of deforestation in some regions and devastating for biodiversity. Now, the EUDR will likely no longer apply to countries such as EU member states, the United States, Russia, China, Bangladesh and Vietnam, raising serious concerns about geopolitical interference in the law’s applicability. “It’s a dark day for Europe’s environmental credentials,” Julian Oram, policy director at nonprofit Mighty Earth, wrote in an email statement. “The inclusion of a new ‘no risk’ category will allow many countries to be considered risk-free, even if deforestation, degradation and illegal practices are still occurring.” The…This article was originally published on Mongabay
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