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<\/p>\nBrussels – Austria\u2019s agriculture and economy ministers have urged European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to postpone the implementation of the new EU anti-deforestation regulation (EUDR), scheduled for January 2025, according to a letter seen by Euractiv.<\/p>\n
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The letter, dated 27 April 2024, is addressed to von der Leyen and EU Commissioners Maro\u0161 \u0160ef\u010dovi\u010d, Janusz Wojciechowski, and Virginijus Sinkevi\u010dius, and has been endorsed by Austria\u2019s minister of agriculture, Norbert Totschnig, and economy minister Martin Kocher.<\/p>\n
The Austrian officials highlighted that the looming implementation of the EUDR presents \u201cinsurmountable challenges\u201d for the national authorities involved and affected businesses.<\/p>\n
They attributed these difficulties to \u201cunnecessary bureaucratic hurdles\u201d that EU countries would face if the rules were enforced\u00a0without classifying countries or regions into three different categories (high, standard and low) based on the risk of deforestation.<\/p>\n
Under the new rules, shipments\u00a0coming\u00a0from higher-risk areas will be subject to stricter checks, while\u00a0requirements for buyers sourcing products from low-risk regions will be simplified.<\/p>\n
However, as they noted, in 2025 all countries including EU member states would fall under the standard risk category since the Commission has hinted at postponing the initial classification until next year.<\/p>\n
The Austrian representatives wrote: \u201cThe lack of classification by the EC [European Commission] for low-risk countries means disproportionately higher control efforts and increased due diligence obligations for all market participants.\u201d<\/p>\n
While acknowledging the\u00a0important\u00a0goal of the EU anti-deforestation regulation in curbing global deforestation, the letter stressed the importance of targeting areas where these practices occur on a large scale.<\/p>\n
\u201cLarge-scale deforestation occurs in countries outside the EU, while forest areas in the EU have been increasing for decades,\u201d reads the letter. \u201cIn Austria, for example, there has been an increase of 330,000 hectares in the last 60 years to now approximately four million hectares,\u201d it continues.<\/p>\n
The politicians underscored that their proposal received backing from 22 EU countries, including Finland, Italy, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Sweden, during a Council meeting last month.<\/p>\n