By DORCAS PHIRI
THE Timber Association of Zambia (TAZ) has appealed to the Ministry of Green Economy to preserve timber through the introduction of licences and ensuring timber meant for auctioning has a market in all provinces as opposed to auctioning to foreigners.
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In an interview with Millennium TV news, TAZ president Charles Masange says the provision of a market for Zambia auction timber in all provinces would help promote sustainable harvesting and tracing the timber which would in turn reduce illegal cutting down of trees.
Mr. Masange said Government should introduce licences in order to curb forest abuse such as illegal cutting of trees instead of banning trading and harvesting of timber.
He advised that timber sellers should sell timber at a price of not less than US$1, 000 per tonne at the loading bay as it took seven to eight years to grow a tree for it to mature be sold at a giveaway price.
Mr. Masange also said the association would ensure investors who come into the country had their receipts approved before being cleared, and those that try to swindle people or produce poor prices risk being reported to the immigration department and later be deported.
He has cautioned timber producers not to resort to cutting timber fruit trees like Mupundu for construction as they risked being jailed for not less than 10 years because getting timber from fruit trees was prohibited in Zambia.
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