Top U.S. Furniture Makers Warned: Illegal Mahogany From Peru Threatens Native People, Amazon Forest
Top-name companies that have acknowledged using South American mahogany include Stickley, Furniture Brands International (maker of Broyhill, Drexel Heritage, Henredon and Thomasville), Henkel-Harris, and Hekman. Other companies contacted by the groups, including Williams-Sonoma -- owner of Pottery Barn -- said they were unaware of the source of their mahogany.
Peru's inability to control mahogany logging makes it impossible for U.S. companies to know if they are buying illegal lumber, the groups say. The unsustainable logging is having devastating effects on indigenous Amazon communities, wildlife, and survival of the mahogany species itself. The exports violate a major treaty, the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES).
"American furniture makers are buying their mahogany
from illegal sources because Peru is simply unable to control the logging. The
consequences for the Amazon people and their forests are tragic," said Ari
Hershowitz, NRDC Latin America BioGems project director. "We're
urging U.S.
companies to stop buying until Peru can organize a lawful, sustainable forestry
system."
This week NRDC and Defenders of Wildlife sent letters to CEOs of major U.S. furniture manufacturers asking them to avoid buying Peruvian mahogany until the illegal logging is stopped.
Illegal logging has been a major problem in Peru for many years, but it accelerated after Brazil cracked down on similar activities in its rainforest. In late March, ParksWatch, a non-profit organization associated with Duke University, released a report that found:
- The Peruvian government is not enforcing national forestry laws and logging bans;
- There is widespread illegal logging in supposedly protected areas in a major national park and on other lands where indigenous people live;
- Peruvian timber companies are mixing legally and illegally logged wood for export;
- Gun-toting loggers are killing indigenous people trying to defend their land with bows and arrows.
The groups say the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service continues to accept invalid export permits for Peruvian mahogany despite clear evidence the Peruvian government is violating CITES treaty rules requiring proof that logs are harvested legally and sustainably. The U.S. agency's lax attitude encourages illegal logging, the groups say.
"This wood is illegal as a matter of both U.S. and
international law. It is illegal to trade in it, to import it, and to possess
it. Even so, the Bush administration has done nothing to stop Peruvian mahogany
from entering the country," said Carroll Muffett, director of Defenders
of
Wildlife's International Program. "We're asking companies to do what the
president won't: Take real action to end illegal logging."
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Defenders of Wildlife is one of the nation's most progressive advocates for wildlife and habitat, and was named as one of America's Top 100 Charities by Worth magazine. With nearly 1 million members, supporters and electronic advocates, Defenders is an effective voice for wildlife and habitat.
The Natural Resources Defense Council is a national, non-profit organization of scientists, lawyers and environmental specialists dedicated to protecting public health and the environment. Founded in 1970, NRDC has more than 1 million members and online activists nationwide, served from offices in New York, Washington, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
Contact(s):
Deborah Bagocius, Defenders of Wildlife, (202) 772-0239Ari Hershowitz, Natural Resources Defense Council, (202) 222-5998
Elliott Negin, Natural Resources Defense Council, (202) 289-2405
