Govt orders use of legal timber 

Government departments have been ordered to buy timber and wood products sourced only from legally harvested forests.

They have also been directed to ensure these products are from sustainable and managed forests.

The measures are a bid to clamp down on illegal logging in the Pacific region which is costing the country billions of dollars.

Forestry Minister Jim Anderton says cheaper imports of illegally logged timber products are hurting manufacturers of goods from New Zealand's indigenous timber, such as beech.

Anderton says they want to lead by example to ensure other governments take action against illegal logging.

He wants others to sign up to a certification programme showing legitimately logged timbers coming only from a sustainable forests.

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