Richard Cowan and Fathin ungku

WASHINGTON/SINGAPORE – Wednesday saw the U.S. Congress unveil legislation to curb illegal deforestation by making certain agricultural commodities like palm oil and cattle less available for trade.

Representative Earl Blumenauer and Democratic Senator Brian Schatz introduced the “FOREST Act of 2020” simultaneously in both the Senate and House of Representatives. However, it faces difficult climbs in a deeply divided Congress.

The Democrats’ bill would require companies to track supply chain information for specific commodities such as palm oil, chocolate, and cow products. Rubber and wood pulp could also be tracked to show that they are not illegally harvested. The United States would block imports that do not meet the requirements and would penalize companies with fines and legal action.

Schatz claimed that “Deforestation continues to accelerate” and said, in a phone interview: “It’s now time to use economic and political power held by the United States to reverse this trend.

This legislation was created to serve as a guideline for other world governments in tackling deforestation. It will be in effect shortly before the U.N. Climate Conference in Glasgow in November. Experts believe that 10% to 15% of all global greenhouse gas emissions is due to deforestation.

Schatz declared that “if the deforestation of a country were a country, it’d be the third-largest emitter” of greenhouse gases.

Schatz sits on the Senate Climate Change Panel and Blumenauer heads the House Trade Subcommittee. However, neither of them have managed to win much support from Republicans. This could make it difficult for the bill to advance in the Senate.

Schatz claimed that none of the Republican senators had signed onto the measure. A Blumenauer aide stated, however, that one Republican in the House is supportive.

Schatz stated that the bill is meant to encourage fair trade and could make for an “interesting political alliance”.

He stated, “We desire to create a level playing ground because none of our commodities have been grown illegally deforested.”

It is currently not planned to include the FOREST Law in Democratic President Joe Biden’s broad legislation that still exists. This includes large new investments in initiatives to lower carbon emissions and global climate change.

Nearly half the tropical deforestation worldwide is thought to result from illegal forest conversion for commercial agriculture. Four commodities – beef, soy, palm oil, and wood products — drive most of this tropical deforestation.

Blumenauer stated that the legislation will focus on the areas with the highest risk of inappropriately harvested products reaching the United States. It will also help countries to develop advanced tracking systems through technical assistance and financial support.

Additionally, the bill seeks to incorporate deforestation into financial crime laws. This will allow the U.S. government to pursue individuals who have used proceeds of deforestation for criminal activities.

Blumenauer noted that Brazil has “real problems” dealing with it, pointing out that the government is “pretty tough-edged”.

He said, “There will be a day when Brazil has a new administration.” “But in the meantime, they are removing large swathes of Amazon Basin (NASDAQ:) Basin,” he stated.