I just listened to a fascinating webinar about The Lacey Act and how companies who knowingly (or “it was so obvious they should have known”) buy illegally harvested wood will be prosecuted. Some of the biggest offending sources are Indonesia and South America, favorite places for big furniture manufacturing. Just another reminder to think about what a “cheap” price tag means to other factors in the lifecycle of a product.

“In May 2008, the United States Congress passed landmark legislation to address the U.S. market’s role in the global illegal logging crisis, becoming the first country in the world to ban the import of illegally harvested wood and wood products.

From Russia to Tanzania, Papua New Guinea to Peru, illegal logging is acknowledged as a major environmental, social and economic problem. The World Bank estimates that it costs developing nations close to $15 billion a year in lost assets and revenues.

Shrinking forest habitats are endangering the future of many forest-dwelling species, including the orangutan (Asia’s only great ape), rhinos, tigers and elephants.

Illegal logging is causing human rights violations and social conflicts in developing countries such as Peru and Honduras.”

via Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), Washington, DC – Forests for the World.