Wood pellet production in Pologrudovo (Siberia). (Photo by Sergei Malgavko/TASS via Getty Images
Many are trying to find ways to reduce the financial infrastructure that underpins Russia’s military as the world watches in horror as Russian troops advance into Ukraine.
The European Union has already imposed unprecedented sanctions. Environmental organizations in Europe and elsewhere are urging for more action, including Russia’s lucrative trade in wood.
A group of over 120 environmental and human rights organizationsPrimarily from Eastern Europe and Belarus, the group calls on governments to ban all imports from Russia and its ally Belarus of any wood or timber products. The group is also asking forestry certification programmes to stop certifying wood originating from these two countries.
Sam Lawson, director EarthsightThe campaign’s impetus was: Everyday, thousands of people are homeless in Ukraine and homes are being bombarded. Solidarity is required across the sector.
Their target market is huge. According to the coalition wood and timber products made from Russian and Belarusian wood were worth $13.9 billion by 2021.
These products include paper, furniture and wood pellets. These products have been around for a long time. Increasing carbon emissions and deforestation are closely associatedWood pellets are still used to heat many European homes. Lawson states that Van Leer and CM Biomass, the largest importers of Russian wood pellets/bioenergy, are among the top importers. They should respond quickly to this crisis by closing down Russian operations. According to Earthsight analysis, most of Denmark’s wood imports from Russia are made up of wood pellets that are traded by CM Biomass (one of the largest independent wood pellet companies in the world).
This type of pressure could already be having an impact. Earthsight identified two of the 15 largest importers of Russian wood in Europe and the USA as two of the 15 companies. IKEAFinnish pulp-paper corporation Stora EnsorRecently,, announced that they would suspend operations in Russia.
The wood campaign is not the only effort to stop Russian imports of natural resources. The Ukrainian Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources also calls for the EU ban on Russian forestry products.
Another campaign targets Russian oil and gas. According to A coalition of 25 European non-governmental organizationsThe campaign group Transport & Environment convened the meeting. Oil has financed Russia’s military for decades. Every day, EU countries spend hundreds and millions of euros on Russian oil.
The Europeans who rely on Russian oil for heating could be affected if this supply is cut off. Governments that decide to end Russian fossil fuels and wood trading will need fuel subsidies for low-income residents. They also need to invest quickly in renewable energy forms (unlike wood pellets).
Transport & Environment call for a 50% target for electric car and van sales in 2025. This is ahead of the existing EU and UK targets.
Heorhiy Veremiychyk, of the National Ecological Center of Ukraine, put it poignantly: We need urgent action to cripple the Putin regime’s ability to fund the war. Russia continues to be paid by European governments, which inadvertently finance Russia’s assault on Ukraine. This must stop.