NEWS

The USDA will invest nearly $50 million in projects that create new markets for wood products. The agency will fund innovative uses of wood in the construction of low carbon buildings, as a renewable energy source, and in manufacturing and processing.

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DHA, the Hardwood Federation, and other wood industry groups oppose the EPA proposal to lower air quality standards for fine particulate matter from 12 to 9 micrograms per cubic meter.

On October 18, DHA and nearly 70 other forestry and forest product associations signed a statement of support for the bipartisan Jobs In The Woods Act, which is now moving forward in Congress. The act will provide grants of $500,000 to $2 million to education programs that promote jobs in the understaffed timber industry and the U.S. Forest Service.

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U.S. plywood manufacturers and workers are getting some justice after two U.S. importers pled guilty to years of evading customs duties on hardwood plywood from China. According to court filings, the guilty parties illegally imported hundreds of shipments of plywood into the U.S. between 2016 and 2020, evading $42 million in duties.

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The European Commission admitted that veneer had been misclassified, reversing its ban on imports of maple veneer from some U.S. states. In a letter to stakeholders, the EC stated its commitment to correcting the error. The specific error is that four CN codes that refer to veneer sheets are listed under point 86 instead of under point 85 where they belong. In response, USDA immediately provided additional guidance: hard maple veneer originating in all U.S.