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Date: Thursday, May 5, 2005
| Re: |
WOOD PACKING MATERIAL - UPDATE |
Dear NASA Member:
Received following from Agriculture Ocean Transportation Coalition:
All imports into the U.S. must be in compliance with the new standard by September 16, 2005. This means that the WPM must be heat treated or fumigated in accordance with the standard and marked with the approved stamp as of this date. (FYI, for those of you wishing to see what the stamp looks like, visit Page 8 of the American Lumber Standards Committee regulations at http://www.alsc.org/greenbook%20collection/WPM_Enforcement_Regulations.pdf). Export compliance depends upon the export country’s timetable for enforcement.
Below is a summary of the new standard and the latest information on implementation by foreign trading partners. Please note that if a specific country is NOT listed, this means that the country has not issued any notice advising of its intent to implement and/or enforce.
New Wood Packing Material Requirements
The United States has signed onto an international agreement on import requirements for Wood Packing Materials (WPM) – both hardwood and softwood – used in international trade. The objective of the participating governments was to develop a uniform standard to control pests in wood packaging material used in global trade. This standard itself is non-binding, thus it is up to the countries which sign onto the Agreement to pass legislation implementing the requirements set forth in the standard. Each country is moving at its own pace, a fact which makes it difficult to provide a firm implementation date for U.S. exporters. For imports, the U.S. will begin implementation on September 1, 2005.
What is required? Under the new international standard (“ISPM 15”), all wood packing material must be heat treated or fumigated in accordance with the standard. Once treated the materials must display a specified mark developed by the International Standards Committee, which has been trademarked for this purpose. This mark is proof that the materials have indeed been treated in accordance with the standard. While the international standard does not require further certification, individual countries may elect to impose additional requirements. For example, the EU is requiring all WPM to be certified as debarked as well.
What is covered? The standard applies to all unprocessed wood or wood products (excluding paper products) used in supporting, protecting or carrying a commodity. This includes pallets, dunnage, crating, packing bloacks, drums, cases, load boards, pallet collars, and skids. Please note that it applies to all wood packing material – not just softwood.
Effective Date -- Imports. Implementation is set for September 1, 2005. We suggest that importers plan well in advance to assure the availability of properly treated and marked WPM in the originating country. Countries that have already implemented the international standard will likely have an abundance of compliant WPM. In other countries it may be more difficult to obtain compliant WPM for shipments to the U.S.
Effective Date – Exports. Compliance for outbound shipments is mandated by the implementation dates of our many trading partners. There is no single source of information for these implementation dates, but we do our best to monitor actions and advise accordingly. Attached is our latest list of implementation dates.
Best regards,
North American Shippers Association (NASA)
Joan Barrett
NASA Administrator
