About the Living Lab
Austria’s Living Lab will look at how to provide digital tools to support the wood traceability over the entire process lifecycle, in compliance with the EU Timber Regulation (EUTR), by involving forest owners, public administrations, forest industry and civil society.
About 48% of Austria is covered by wood, of which 82% is privately owned. The Austrian authority to implement the EUTR is the Federal Forest Office (BFW). Although import of round wood relies mostly on neighbouring countries such as the Czech Republic, Germany, Slovenia and Italy, the import of potentially illegally logged tropical timber or timber from Eastern Europe such as the Ukraine or Romania is a potential concern.
The EUTR (Regulation No 995/2010) prohibits the placing of illegally logged timber and derived products on the European market. Any type of operator is obliged to set up and maintain a due diligence system to minimise the risk of importing illegally logged timber and derived products. Such system includes: information, risk assessment and risk mitigation.
Living Lab coordinator: Sistema GmbH
Domain: Forestry
Focal question
Objectives
- Understand the current degree of technology used within the framework of the EUTR in Austria.
- Identify potential technologies, which would allow tracing wood, timber and timber products, and hence positively affect the efficiency and effectiveness of the EUTR.
- Identify possible future scenarios of technology use, including barriers and enablers.
- Support the spreading of tools and technologies among the actors.
Main stakeholders
State authorities
Local public authority
Digital technology projects
Business sector
Research and academia
Non-government organisations
Key documents
Policy brief: European Rounwood Traceability
National Policy Analysis: Austria
Practice Abstract: Round wood traceability