The Oct. 6 edition of the New Yorker has a story about a duo who go off to several countries in an effort to track down the origin of wood products. Much of Wal-Mart’s wood products are produced from trees illegally cut in Russia and imported into China. Wal-Mart is now claiming it will eliminate products from illegally cut wood within six years. The company’s decision might have something to do with a law passed recently.

The article isn’t part of the magazine’s on-line edition, but there’s some audio and video here. It’s a very interesting story. Ask your library to track down a copy.