G/TBT/N/CHE/234  
 
16 April 2019  
(19-2515) Page: 1/2 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade  Original: English  
 
  NOTIFICATION  
The following notification is being circulated in accordance with Article 10.6  
 
1. Notifying Member:  SWITZERLAND   
If applicable, name of local government involved (Article 3.2 and 7.2):   
2. Agency responsible:  Federal Office for the Environment FOEN  
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers , email and website 
addresses, if available) of agency or authority designated to handle comments 
regarding the notification shall be indicated if different from above:   
State Secretariat for Economic Affairs SECO  
Holzikofenweg 36, 3003 Berne  
tbt@seco.admin.ch  
www.seco.admin.ch  
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [X], 2.10.1 [   ], 5.6.2 [   ], 5.7.1 [   ], other :  
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national  tariff 
heading. ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicable):  Timber and 
timber products, notably HS 4401, 4403, 4006, 4407, 4408, 4409, 4410, 4411, 4412, 
441300, 441400, 4415 (Not packing material used exclusively as packing material to 
support, protect or carry another product placed on the market), 441600, 4418, Pulp and 
paper of Chapters 47 and 48 of the Combined Nomenclature, with the exception of 
bamboo -based and recovered (waste and scrap) products, 9403 30, 9403 40, 9403 50, 
9403 60, 9403 90, 9406; (HS: 47, 48, 4401, 4403, 4406, 4407, 4408, 4409, 4410, 4411, 
4412, 4413, 4414, 4415, 4416, 4418, 9406, 940330, 940340, 940350, 940360, 940390); 
(ICS: 33.020, 33.050, 33.060, 79.040)  
5. Title, number of pages and language(s) of the notified document:  Draft Federal Act 
on the Protection of the Environment of 7 October 1983 (EPA, SR 814.01); 24 pages for 
the explanatory report, 3 pages for the draft of the new legal provision, available in 
German, French and Italian. (0 page(s), in Abkhazian)  
6. Description of content:  Creation of a legal framework for the rapid implementation in 
Switzerland of regulations equivalent to the EUTR (Regulation (EU) No 995/2010 of the 
European Parliament and of the Council of 20 October 2010 laying down the obligat ions of 
operators who place timber and timber products on the market (Text with EEA relevance), 
in order to ban the import of illegally harvested timber.  
The draft law provides that only legally harvested and marketed timber may be placed on 
the market in Switzerland. Operators placing wood on the market for the first time will 
have to exercise due diligence. As part of a risk assessment, information on wood species 
and country of origin should be provided. Also, Measures have to be taken to reduce the 
risk of placing illegally harvested timber on the market. Documentation proving the legality 
of forest exploitation in the country of origin and information on how the wood is 
processed, for example, should be provided.  
The traceability of wood bought or sold must also be guaranteed. A specialised service will 
be responsible for monitoring the measures at the national level. The task of the 
monitoring organisations approved by the Confederation will be to support and monitor 
compliance with the due diligence sy stem in cooperation with market participants  G/TBT/N/CHE/234  
 
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  7. Objective and rationale, including the nature of urgent problems where 
applicable:  The proposed ban on the import of illegally harvested timber contributes to 
the protection of forests around the world and their sustainable use. Forests prevent 
desertification and soil erosion and limit weather -related damage, especially flood damage. 
Their protection has a positive impact on biodiversity conservation. The regulation also 
aims to eliminate barriers to trade affecting Swiss companies in their commercial activities 
with the EU . 
8. Relevant documents:   
Proposed amendments to the Federal Act on the Protection of the Environment of 7 
October 1983 (EPA, SR 814.01):  
•  https://www.bafu.admin.ch/bafu/de/home/dokumentation/medienmitteilungen/a
nzeige -nsb-unter -medienmitteilungen.msg -id-73266.html  (German)  
•  https://www.bafu.admin.ch/bafu/fr/home/documentation/communique/anzeige -
nsb-unter -medienmitteilungen.msg -id-73266.html  (French)  
•  https://www.bafu.admin.ch/bafu/it/home/documentazione/comunicati/anzeige -
nsb-unter -medienmitteilungen.msg -id-73266.html  (Italian)  
See also:  
Federal Act on the Protection of the Environment of 7 October 1983 (EPA, SR 814.01)  
•  https://www.admin.ch/opc/de/classified -compilation/19830267/index.html  
(German)  
•  https://www.admin.ch/opc/fr/ classified -compilation/19830267/index.html  
(French)  
•  https://www.admin.ch/opc/it/classified -compilation/19830267/index.html  
(Italian)  
https://www.admin.ch/opc/en/classified -compilation/19830267/index.html  (in English. 
English is not an official language of the Swiss Confederation, therefore this translat ion has 
no legal force)  
9. Proposed date of adoption:  September or December 2019  
Proposed date of entry into force:  1 July 2020  
10. Final date for comments:  60 days from notification  
11. Texts available from:  National enquiry point [X] or address, telephone and fax 
numbers and email and website addresses, if available , of other body: