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Chamber of Commerce Wants a Timber Exchange
The Chamber of Commerce and Industry plans to propose electronic timber trading to the Russian administration before the end of the year. This is a measure to fight illegal trading in timber and to establish an indicator price for the domestic and foreign markets. Market participants support the proposal. According to the Union of the Timber Industry and Timber Exporters, more then 1 million cu. m. of timber is illegally cut in Russia every year and, according to Chamber of Commerce and Accounting Chamber auditor Alexander Belyakov, illegal sales of timber amount to 18 million cu. m. per year and are growing by 10 percent per year. The state Rosleskhoz agency monitors forest use, but that is obviously an insufficient means of control. The Chamber of Commerce says that a timber exchange will help. “When the first user files an application to use a first plot, it will be easy to track the further chain of users, if there should be one,” Belyakov explained.
Deputy Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Natural Resources and Natural Resource Use Vladimir Krupchak supports the idea. He said that the exchange would help set an indicator price for timber and its products, such as cellulose and cardboard. “That will significantly simplify the work of the tax service,” he noted. He also favors harsher penalties for illegal forest use. The electronic exchange will also allow potential buyers to receive reliable information about the origins and quality of the timber for sale.
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Photo: Vladimir Ryabkov
