MEDIA REPORTS
FORESTS, DESERTS
AND LAND
This page was updated
on: 01/13/10
2004
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2003;
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DECEMBER 2004
NEW PROTECTED AREAS ESTABLISHED IN AMAZON
The
Brazilian State of Amazonas has announced the creation of a mosaic of
protected areas totaling over three million hectares in the southern
part of the state, according to a recent press announcement. The Apui
mosaic covers an area that is slightly smaller than the state of
Belgium. It consists of nine inter-connected conservation areas: two
state parks that emphasize nature protection, four state forests that
focus on sustainable forest management, and three extractive and
sustainable use reserves that provide options for traditional people and
resource users to practice sustainable harvesting.
Links to further information
Brazil Protects Three Million Hectares of Amazon Forests, WWF press
release, 23 Dec 2004
FOREST STEWARDSHIP COUNCIL
AWARDED US$1 MILLION FOR COMMITMENT TO SUSTAINABILITY
The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)
has been awarded the first Alcan Prize for Sustainabilityand one
million dollars in prize money.
The FSC's work focuses on developing standards for responsible forest
management, based on global principles and criteria promoting
environmentally appropriate, socially responsible and economically
viable management of the world's forests. FSC standards are implemented
through a forest certification system and recognized in the market
through a distinctive trademark and labeling system.
Alcan, a multinational aluminum and packaging company, created the
Alcan Prize for Sustainability in January 2004 to recognize outstanding
contributions to the goal of economic, environmental, and social
sustainability by not-for-profit, non-governmental and civil society
organizations. The International Business Leaders Forum (IBLF) manages
the application and selection process to ensure the credibility and
objectivity of the Prize.
Four hundred eighty-eight submissions
were received from 79 countries for the 2004 prize, which was awarded to
FSC on 15 December 2004. Highlighting its reasons for selecting FSC, the
Adjudication Panel noted that "the FSC has pioneered an innovative,
market-based approach to responsible forest management by linking forest
management to the market through certification and product labeling. In
doing so, it has created partnerships through a value chain that
includes producers, retailers, and consumers. This ambitious
sustainability model works through strong partnerships with a range of
stakeholders around the world."
Links to further
information
Alcan Press Release, 15 December 2004
NOVEMBER 2004
UNDP, UNCCD AGREE ON MAINSTREAMING NATIONAL ACTION
PROGRAMMES
The UN bodies responsible for development issues and
desertification have agreed on a plan to help mainstream national plans
to combat desertification into the broader development agenda. The UN
Development Programme (UNDP) and Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)
recently struck a deal that will allow UNDP Resident Representatives to
mainstream "National Action Programmes" (NAPs) designed to combat
desertification into development planning processes at the country
level.
The agreement covers activities related to policy
advocacy, capacity building and promotion of best practices for
sustainable land management to support countries in responding to their
obligations under the UNCCD. Assistance to countries will also include
advisory services to improve the NAP process, and advocacy support to
raise public awareness at the local level. Approximately 70 countries
have adopted NAPs. The agreement also calls on UNDP, as an implementing
agency of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), to work with the UNCCD
Secretariat in exploring ways to facilitate the efforts of affected
countries to access GEF funds.
Links to further information
UNCCD
news release, November 2004
"GREEN POLICE" TO
PROTECT AMAZON
Brazil has opened Latin America's largest
environmental police training camp as part of ongoing efforts to protect
the Amazon. Commenting on the new police academy, Brazil's Environment
Minister Marina Silva noted that, while the country's environmental laws
are among the most rigorous in the developing world, Brazil still
struggles to enforce them due to resource constraints and objections
from business and agricultural elites who believe environmental
protection impedes progress. According to Reuters, federal police agents
at the academy will learn how to raid illegal mining and squatter camps,
stop foreigners from stealing plant and animal species and "shoot
straight in the jungle." The academy opened on 16 November 2004.
In related news, the Brazilian
non-governmental organization Imazon released a study in late November
containing satellite photos showing that land occupation and
deforestation now covers approximately 47 percent of the Amazon. The
group reported that this level of destruction is worse than government
data have shown.
Links to further information
Mongabay website/Reuters news article, 17 November 2004
Forest
Conservation Portal/Reuters news article, 23 November 2004
Imazon's study:
Forest Facts in the Brazilian Amazon 2003
OVER 2 MILLION HECTARES DECLARED
PROTECTED IN BRAZILIAN AMAZON
Brazilian President Luiz
Inacio Lula da Silva created two new environmental reserves in the
Amazon on 9 November 2004. The reserves are to be classified as
"extractavist" reserves, meaning that the local population will be
allowed to remain in the area to tap rubber, pick fruits and nuts and
extract regenerating goods from the forest. The new reserves will
protect over 2 million hectares in the Amazon state of Para.
Greenpeace's Amazon campaign coordinator Paulo Adario expressed pleasure
with "the government's decision to honor its commitment to protect the
planet's biggest tropical forest and the communities that live in them."
The announcement came on the heels of the release, at the October
meeting of the Latin American and Caribbean Forestry Commission, of FAO
projections that the region will see less natural forest cover but more
protected areas and forest plantations by 2020.
Links to
further information
Brazil Creates Two New
Forest Reserves, ENN, 10 November 2004
Major Win for the Amazon and Local Communities, Greenpeace press
release, 9 November 2004
More
protected areas and planted forests in Latin America and the Caribbean,
FAO news release, 20 October 2004
MEXICAN FARMERS EYEING INTERNATIONAL BAMBOO MARKET
Mexican farmers are taking an interest in
bamboo production, according to a recent Associated Press report.
Bambuver, a private group in Mexico that was formed to promote the
bamboo industry, receives government funds and coordinates its
activities with private organizations and universities. It is also
talking with private Mexican industries about using bamboo in
construction and paper production and as a fuel. A type of grass that
thrives in diverse climates, bamboo can grow into 100-foot timber
stalks. It also grows quickly, taking only three years for a farmer to
develop a bamboo plantation.
China currently claims about half the
global bamboo market, which is valued at approximately US$10 billion.
Analysts predict the market could be worth $20 billion by 2015, led by
US demand for paper. Bamboo from Mexico could reach Europe in 11 days
versus the 44 days required to transport imports from China and
Thailand. Mexican bamboo producers also see their efforts as one way to
reclaim US market share that has been lost to China over textiles,
televisions, automobiles and computer parts.
Links to
further information
Mexico Dreams of
Challenging China in Bamboo Market, ENN, 2 November 2004
OCTOBER 2004
BRAZILIAN CONGRESS TO CONSIDER
CONTROVERSIAL PLAN FOR SUSTAINABLE USE OF AMAZON
A
plan that would grant access to public land for sustainable use,
initially for 30 years, is soon heading to the Brazilian Congress. Under
the plan, licenses would be allocated under a system of competitive bids
between Brazilian firms. Those granted licenses would pay an annual fee
determined by what they extract from their plot. Potential areas
considered under this plan amount to approximately two percent of the
Amazon forest. Brazil's O Globo newspaper has described the plan as one
that will "privatize the Amazon" and has accused the government of
wanting to sell land to private enterprises, including non-Brazilians.
Citing a number of ways the proposal could be improved, Brazil's Friends
of the Earth director, Roberto Smeraldi urged a change in the proposed
use of flexible payments, noting that this method is not likely to
encourage the most economical use of land or stimulate good forestry
management.
Links to
further information
Guardian Unlimited, 1 October 2004
JULY 2004
BRAZIL'S ARMY ENTERS FIGHT
AGAINST ILLEGAL DEFORESTATION
Brazil's
Environment and Defense ministers signed a cooperation pact on 13 July
2004 through which the environment ministry will provide 100 million
reals (more than US$3 million) to the defense ministry for the services
of 100 soldiers and 18 helicopters. The agreement also provides for
environmental protection agents to gain access to military bases. The
soldiers are expected to transport environmental enforcement agents
around the Amazon region and to help set up road blocks and checkpoints
on the region's rivers.
Links to
further information
ENN story, 14 July 2004
http://www.enn.com/news/2004-07-14/s_25815.asp
UN Wire, 14 July 2004
http://www.unwire.org/UNWire/20040714/449_25841.asp
JUNE 2004
GM
TREES DESTROYED IN FINLAND
Four hundred genetically
modified birch trees in eastern Finland were chopped down or torn up by
their roots over the 19-20 June 2004 weekend. Police did not know who
was behind the attack on Finland's only research into the environmental
impact of biotechnology on forests. The site was fenced but unguarded.
"The research investigated the possible environmental effects of doing
field studies using genetically modified materials" said research
station head Juhani Haggman, who also discussed the value of the loss.
"We are talking about several hundreds of thousands of euros in losses.
The highest estimates that have been aired have been close to a million
euros ($1.21 million). Then there's the value the research results would
have had." The forestry industry hopes genetic modification could cut
paper-making costs and improve products by producing trees with suitable
traits. Some environmental groups fear genetically modified trees could
contaminate food crops and wild species, which was an issue under
consideration by the study.
Links to
further information
Reuters AlertNet, 23 June
2004
http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L23613651.htm
ENN news story, 24 June 2004
http://www.enn.com/news/2004-06-24/s_25187.asp
UNCCD TURNS 10 ON WORLD
DAY TO COMBAT DESERTIFICATION
On 17 June 2004, the UN
Convention to Combat Desertification celebrated the 10th anniversary
since its negotiations were completed in Paris, France. Events were
organized worldwide to mark the occasion and statements by individuals
involved in the original negotiations as well as from other UN bodies
were offered.
Bo Kjellén, who chaired the
negotiations of the Convention, reminisced that "the Convention,
negotiated at great speed, has
stood the test of time, and demonstrated
its usefulness to the international community as one of the Rio
Conventions
" Greetings from Hamdallah Zedan, Executive Secretary of the
Convention on Biological Diversity, highlighted that, "As is illustrated
by the Theme chosen for this year's World Day to Combat Desertification
and Drought – Social Dimensions of Desertification: Migration and
Poverty – there is a strong correlation between living in drylands and
living in poverty
I pledge renewed efforts to reinforce the positive
synergies that together we can bring to bear on meeting our shared goal
of achieving by 2010 a significant reduction of the current rate of
biodiversity loss and thus, a significant alleviation of world poverty."
UN Secretary-General Kofi
Annan's message on World Day to Combat Desertification noted that the
General Assembly has declared 2006 the International Year of Deserts and
Desertification and congratulated "all the stakeholders on the
achievements of the past decade, and encourage them to confirm and
strengthen their commitment to the UNCCD process."
The UNCCD Secretariat marked
the completion of the Convention's first 10 years with the launch of a
new awareness campaign. "Skin erosion: Soil is the planet's skin.
Desertification threatens its surface" is the message that the UNCCD
hopes the international community will remember when thinking about
desertification and its effects on the planet.
Links to
further information
UNCCD newsroom, 17 June 2004
http://www.unccd.int/publicinfo/june17/greeting.php
UN Secretary-General Kofi
Annan's statement
http://www.unccd.int/publicinfo/statement/annan2004.php
UNCCD's global awareness
campaign
http://unccd.int/publicinfo/publications/poster.php
PARTNERSHIP DELIVERS SEED MONEY FOR
AMAZON PROTECTED AREAS FUND
WWF officials recently presented
Brazilian President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva with a check for $500,000
in seed money for the Amazon Regional Protected Areas (ARPA) trust fund.
ARPA is a partnership that was launched at the World Summit on
Sustainable Development between the Brazilian government, WWF, the
Brazilian Biodiversity Fund, the German Development Bank, the World Bank
and the Global Environment Facility (GEF). The GEF contributed a
matching $500,000 grant for the fund's initial capitalization. The
ultimate objective is a fully capitalized fund of $240 million, which
will be used to maintain and protect a 193,000 square mile network of
national parks and sustainable use reserves – an area larger than the
entire US National Park System. More than 20,000 square miles of new
protected areas have already been established under ARPA, and other
areas have been mapped and are undergoing scientific evaluation for
inclusion in the ARPA network.
Links to
further information
WWF ARPA feature webpage
http://www.worldwildlife.org/forests/projects/arpa.cfm
ENS, 4 June 2004
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/jun2004/2004-06-04-03.asp
World Bank press release on the launch of
ARPA at the WSSD
http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES
/LACEXT/BRAZILEXTN/0,,contentMDK:20064863~menuPK:322361
~pagePK:141137~piPK:141127~theSitePK:322341,00.html
MARCH 2004
INDONESIA MOVES TO
STOP MONEY LAUNDERING IN ILLEGAL LOGGING ACTIVITIES
The Center for International Forestry
Research (CIFOR) and the Government of Indonesia have recently signed a
Memorandum of Understanding to combat money laundering related to
illegal logging in Indonesia. The MOU covers activities ranging from
data sharing to training to the formulation of guidelines to help
financial institutions identify money-laundering activities and
eventually prevent them. Revised money laundering legislation in
Indonesia seeks to place the onus on banks to report to the Indonesian
Government's Financial Transaction and Report Analysis Center (PPATK)
any transactions suspected of being connected with crimes against the
forests and the environment, such as illegal logging.
CIFOR's policy analyst Bambang Setiono
said "Indonesia is the first country in the world to include
environmental and forest crimes in anti-money laundering legislation.
This new law will help remove Indonesia from the OECD's Financial Action
Task Force's list of un-cooperative countries in its global crack down
on money laundering activities."
Links to
further information
Future Harvest news release, 23 March
2004
http://www.futureharvest.org/news/ill_logging.shtml
BRAZIL ANNOUNCES ANTIDEFORESTATION
PLAN
Brazilian Environment
Minister Marina Silva announced a new system of satellite monitoring,
investigation and laws to curb deforestation in the Amazon. Under the
$136 million annual plan, the National Institute for Space Research will
monitor the jungle using satellites, several ministries in addition to
environmental agencies will be responsible for antideforestation
programmes, and the government will push for a law that makes it illegal
to occupy and deforest public lands. According to Reuters, Brazilian
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva promised to introduce satellite
monitoring last year when he noted a 40 percent increase in the
destruction of the Amazon from 2001 to 2002. Critics have complained
that the plan is not new, but merely repackages existing activities.
Links to
further information
Environment News Service, 18
March 2004
http://forests.org/articles/reader.asp?linkid=30289
Environmental News Network,
16 March 2004
http://www.enn.com/news/2004-03-16/s_14039.asp
INDONESIA CONSIDERS
INSTITUTING DEATH PENALTY FOR ILLEGAL LOGGING
Come April 2004, the
Indonesia government will consider issuing a Presidential decree
instituting the death penalty for illegal loggers and corrupt officials
who help them. More than 90 percent of the timber cut in Indonesia is
illegal, and some environmentalists predict that Indonesia's hardwood
forests will disappear within the decade given limited replanting
programmes to replace the thousands of acres of timber destroyed
annually. A senior official at the nature conservation directorate of
the Forestry Ministry, Fachrir Fathoni, said "We are seriously
considering the death penalty. We want to get the big players."
Links to
further information
Environmental News Network,
16 March 2004
http://www.enn.com/news/2004-03-16/s_14046.asp
FEBRUARY 2004
TROPICAL FORESTS IN
BORNEO DISAPPEARING FASTER THAN EXPECTED
Tropical forests in Borneo are
disappearing faster than previously thought, according to Indonesian and
American researchers in a recent issue of Science. Using field,
aerial and remote-sensing surveys to assess forest loss, the study found
that over half of protected lowland forests disappeared between 1985 and
2001 through logging and human land use. The researchers call for
"international efforts to document a legitimate chain-of-custody from
the forest stand to consumers" to stem the flow of illegal wood from
Borneo.
Links to
further information
Lowland Forest Loss in Protected Areas of Indonesian Borneo, Science,
13 February 2004
http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/303/5660/1000?
ijkey=5akJNF1Tzunj2&keytype=ref&siteid=sci
SciDev.Net, 13 February 2004
http://www.scidev.net/News/index.cfm?fuseaction=readNews
&itemid=1234&language=1
RAMIN TRADE GIVES RISE TO MUTUAL ACCUSATIONS
Indonesia and Malaysia
exchanged accusations over trade in ramin, an endangered tree species.
On 12 February, the Indonesian government accused Malaysia of illegally
smuggling ramin from Indonesia and called for a global boycott of
Malaysian wood products. Malaysian Primary Industries Minister Lim Keng
Yaik said the criticism indicated "malicious intent" to pressure his
country to prohibit the ramin trade, and added that ramin production in
Malaysia is sustainable. Indonesia banned trade and export of ramin in
August 2001 through the UN Convention on International Trade in
Endangered Species (CITES). Malaysia did not agree to the ramin ban, but
is required to document the origin of ramin timber as a CITES signatory.
Links to
further information
UN
Wire, 12 and 13 February 2004
http://www.unwire.org/UNWire/20040213/449_13136.asp
http://www.unwire.org/UNWire/20040212/449_13066.asp
ENN,
13 February 2004
http://www.enn.com/news/2004-02-13/s_13124.asp
ILLEGAL
LOGGING DESTROYING INDONESIAN RAINFORESTS
The Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA)
along with Telapak, an Indonesian partner organization, has recently
released a report documenting the trade in timber from ramin, an
endangered Indonesian tree species. The report presents evidence tracing
illegally cut Indonesian ramin to Malaysia, where it is given false
certificates of origin for export. Indonesia banned trade and export of
ramin in August 2001 through the UN Convention on International Trade in
Endangered Species (CITES). Malaysia did not agree to the ramin ban, but
is required to document the origin of ramin timber as a CITES signatory.
The Indonesian government estimates approximately 90 percent of logging
in the country is illegal.
Links to
further information
ENN news story, 6 February 2004
http://www.ens-newswire.com/ens/feb2004/2004-02-06-11.asp.
EIA's website
http://www.eia-international.org/index_shocked.shtml
JANUARY 2004
CRACKDOWN ON ILLEGAL LOGGING IN MEXICO
HASN'T SLOWED DEFORESTATION
A recent crackdown on illegal
logging has not slowed deforestation in the monarch butterfly's winter
habitat. Police and environmental prosecutors closed down illegal
sawmills, arrested 28 people and confiscated illegally harvested lumber
in central Mexico in November 2003. But Lincoln Brower, an ecologist
watching the monarch migration to Mexico, said deforestation continues
and the law enforcement effort to protect these butterflies has not been
effective.
Links to further information
ENN news story, 28 January 2004
http://www.enn.com/news/2004-01-28/s_12477.asp
CITIGROUP TO SCREEN PROJECTS FOR
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
Citigroup, the US's largest
financial institution, is adopting a corporate policy to carefully
evaluate requests for project financing that could adversely affect the
environment. The bank's new policy will include a ban on lending for
commercial logging in primary, tropical forests and refuse loans to
companies engaged in illegal logging. The bank will also develop a
programme to invest in sustainable forestry and renewable energy and
report greenhouse gas emissions from power projects in its portfolio.
Links to further information
ENN news story, 23 January 2004
http://www.enn.com/news/2003-01-23/s_12380.asp
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