Posted 06/11/2024

Source Certain recently contributed to a trial conducted by the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry investigating the best ways to implement technologies verifying claims of species and harvest origin of regulated timber and timber products.

As part of the trial, Source Certain utilised its scientific wood and timber testing services to determine the species and harvest origin of various supplied timber samples collected by the Department. Source Certain relies on stable isotope analysis, trace element analysis and advanced microscopy to deliver these services.

Deputy Secretary for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Policy Matt Lowe said globally, it has been estimated that about 15-30% of all wood traded is a product of illegal logging and illicit wood.

“Use of timber testing technologies will strengthen Australia’s ongoing efforts to address this problem by enhancing existing compliance and due diligence efforts under our illegal logging prohibition laws,” Mr Lowe said.

“They offer a means of verifying if claims made about the species and harvest origin of timber are accurate.

“The results showed approximately 25% of products tested had an inconsistency with declared species, origin, or both.

“This trial provides great insight into the benefits of introducing timber testing technologies to help mitigate the risk of illegally logged timber entering Australia’s market and better support the forestry sector,” Mr Lowe said.

Source Certain delivers wood and timber testing services to clients across the globe to provide confidence in origin claims and sustainable sourcing practices.

Read the full statement from the Department here.

 

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