The UNECE Timber Committee has noted the role of the Kyoto Protocol in highlighting the need for better communication on the “multiple positive roles of forests and wood in carbon cycles.” The Timber Committee, which met in Geneva for its 63rd session from 27-30 September 2005, also analyzed the current forest products market situation in 2005 and forecast markets for 2006.

Among the Committee’s overall findings were that: timber markets continue at record levels in the subregions of the UNECE – CIS, Europe and North America; governments, civil society and industry are working together to address illegal logging and the trade of illegally derived products, public procurement policies, certification, corporate responsibility, “green building” and improved communication; and catastrophic windstorms in 2005 in the Baltic Sea region and the hurricanes in the Gulf region of the United States caused extensive forest damage with subsequent effects on primary wood products production and trade patterns. On 30 September 2005, the Timber Committee adopted a “Statement on Forest Products Markets in 2005 and Prospects for 2006,” which reviews the overall forest market and identifies market sector developments. The Statement.