In 2021, the U.K. appeared to be making serious strides against illegal deforestation when lawmakers introduced “forest risk” regulations on imported commodities like beef, soy, palm oil, cocoa, coffee and rubber. But critics have said the rules are surprisingly weak, requiring another round of legislation to be effective. Lawmakers have spent the last four years delaying the implementation of the forest risk regulations, which are part of a larger law called the Environment Act. In that time, the country has imported commodities that have destroyed huge amounts of forest across the globe, according to a recent report from Global Witness. “The UK government has described the Environment Act as ‘world leading,’ but we beg to differ,” the U.K.-based NGO said in the report. High-risk commodities imported to the U.K. contributed to 13,500 hectares (nearly 33,400 acres) of global deforestation in 2024, according to the report. Since the Environment Act was passed in 2021, the country’s imports have resulted in more than 39,300 hectares (97,100 acres) of deforestation. Agribusiness continues to be the worst aggressor, the NGO said. Between November 2021 and December 2024, Brazil cattle products alone caused almost a third of the U.K.’s total deforestation footprint, amounting to 12,856 hectares (31,768 acres). Palm oil was responsible for more than 11,644 hectares (28,773 acres) of deforestation, most notably affecting rainforests in Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. These two countries together lost 10,975 hectares (27,120 acres) as a result of business with the U.K. The Javari river in the Peruvian Amazon.…This article was originally published on Mongabay
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