Forest Legality in Mexico Study Outcomes

Transcription

1 Forest Legality in Mexico Study Outcomes

2 Starting point: The Three Hypotheses H1 H2 H3 Few knowledge on the legal/illegal timber market and its impact Forest Regulation generates high costs, low competitiveness and informality (illegality) Need to focus control on the market, not the forest

3 About the survey H2 Forest Regulation generates high costs, low competitiveness and informality (illegality) NATIONAL LEVEL 1344 ejidos Authorized for harvesting: 652 ejidos + Not authorized for harvesting: 692 ejidos BY SIZE SMALL MEDIUM LARGE 200 ha to 1,600 ha 1,601 ha to 7,450 ha 7451 ha or higher REPRESENTATIVITY AND LEVELS OF ANALYSIS Ejido = production unit BY STATE Chihuahua / Durango / Jalisco Guerrero / Oaxaca / Veracruz Edomex / Hidalgo /Puebla / Tlaxcala Campeche / Quintana Roo / Yucatán

4 Forest Regulation: main findings 1/4 AVERAGE EJIDO ACCESS COSTS IN RELATION TO TOTAL INCOME FROM FOREST ACTIVITIES On average, the aggregated cost of authorization exceeds by 7 to 12 times the permit fee. For an average ejido, access costs represent between 7% and 13% of total forest income. Minimum costs 7% Maximum costs 13% Cost from forest activities 87%

5 Forest Regulation: main findings 2/4 ACCESS COSTS VS FOREST INCOME The smaller the size, the harder it is for ejidos to run a profitable forest enterprise. 89% 76% 69% INCOME ACCESS COSTS 24% 31% 11% Large Medium Small

6 Forest Regulation: main findings 3/4 < 3 MONTHS >4 MONTHS Campeche 16% 79% Waiting periods are the most important aspect of the permit that needs to improve: Statewide unanimity Chihuahua Durango 40% 35% 59% 64% By law, authorization should delay no more than 30 working days (3 months). Repetition is also a problem. Estado de México Hidalgo Jalisco Oaxaca 45% 21% 28% 44% 45% 77% 69% 50% Puebla 38% 62% Extreme cases: Some ejidos have repeated the process 10 or more times. Quintana Roo Tlaxcala Veracurz Yucatán 28% 33% 16% 0% 65% 61% 62% 100%

7 Forest Regulation: main findings 4/4 24% of all respondents agree that permits are the main factor that motivates illegal logging Ejidos between 6 and 10 years of forest activities are the least prone to renovate, while ejidos with 40+ years are the most willing to do so.

8 Empowerment and governance Or how social property affects decision making processes in forest management Ejidos do not know the costs that forest activities generate. Customer satisfaction? No, thank you Nonexistent business model 31% does not know the yearly payroll, administrative nor transportation costs. 86% is not willing to modify their product according to the customer s needs. 51% does not have an expansion plan.

9 From a vicious to a virtuous circle Legality Competitiveness Obtaining timber without permission has happened a lot with small owners, and I think it s the government s fault, for making out-of-reach requirements. And then, what do people think? I have my forest and I am going to manage it anyway. The government let illegal logging happen. Loggers then sell really cheap to sawmills and that money isn t enough to replant what they harvest. - Forest owner, Puebla

10 Cost-effectiveness of forest surveillance H3 Need to focus control on the market, not the forest FOREST INSPECTIONS SEIZED TIMBER (M 3 ) Forest 40% Other 9% Forest 15% Other 14% Transportation 16% Storage & Transformation 30% Transportation 24% Storage & Transformation 52%

11 Options for reducing the illegal market Legal timber Illegal timber 5%reduction proposal 72% 4,235,660 m 3 28% 1,353,058 m 3 23% 5% 294,143 m 3 In Transportation only: In order to reduce 5%, it would cost: In Forests only: US$1.3 million (US$4.6/m 3 ) US$1 million (US$3.5/m 3 ) In S&T only: US$127,000 (US$0.45/m 3 )

12 The new hypotheses H2 Forest Regulation generates high costs, low competitiveness and informality (illegality). Permit approval time, not permit fees, are the most pressing matter for forest owners. H3 Focusing control on markets, instead of in forests, is the most cost-effective solution to reduce illegality in Mexico. Create structures that allow it to be more efficent.

13 Muchas gracias Mario /ReforestamosMexico