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WORLDWIDE
BIODIVERSITY/FOREST CAMPAIGN NEWS
RAN
Action Alert--Pristine Forests Clearcut for Phone Books
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Forest
Networking a Project of Ecological Enterprises
April
16, 1995
OVERVIEW
& SOURCE
Here is
continued coverage, this time from the Rainforest Action
Network,
of the Clayoquat Sound tragedy in Canada.
Nearly half
the
mass of trees clearcut from Clayoquot Sound become paper for
products
like phone books and newspapers. RAN claims Pacific Bell,
GTE and
The New York Times are three main buyers of this pulp.
This
item was posted in econet's ran.news conference.
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RELAYED
TEXT STARTS HERE:
/*
Written 4:51 PM Apr 14, 1995 by rainforest in ran.news */
/*
---------- "Action Alert: Phonebooks" ---------- */
Action
Alert #107
Pristine
forests clearcut for phone books
The
stack of phone books you keep near the phone for occasional
use may
seem relatively harmless, but it contains paper derived
from
pristine ancient rainforests. Nearly half the mass of trees
clearcut
from Clayoquot Sound-ancient rainforest on Vancouver
Island's
western coast-ends up as paper for products like phone
books
and newspapers. In this case Pacific Bell, GTE and The New
York
Times are three main buyers of this pulp.
Rainforest
Action Network has helped form the Clayoquot Rainforest
Coalition
to protect British Columbia's ancient rainforests. The
coalition-which
includes Greenpeace, Natural Resources Defense
Council,
and Pacific Environment and Resource Center-plans to
redirect
U.S. markets to ecologically sound alternatives.
One
immediate goal is to protect Clayoquot Sound, home of some of
the
last and largest fragments of ancient temperate rainforest
left on
earth. Clayoquot has drawn international attention and
support.
More than 10,000 people have protested and more than a
thousand
been arrested in Clayoquot Sound, making this the largest
public
outcry in Canadian history.
Several
European companies, including Kimberly-Clark UK and Scott
Paper
Ltd. have heeded the environmentalists' call. These firms
canceled
contracts with MacMillan Bloedel, Canada's largest
logging
company, which operates over much of Clayoquot Sound.
Unfortunately,
some of the largest U.S. purchasers of MacMillan
Bloedel
paper, notably those in California, have been slow in
coming
around. Despite meetings, repeated correspondence, and
actions
by the coalition, the two phone companies GTE and Pacific
Bell
have been unresponsive. Both claim they're only buying
sawmill
byproducts and inferior wood from MacMillan Bloedel. But
MacMillan
Bloedel itself estimates about 20 - 25% of the trees it
cuts go
directly to paper, and when pulp markets are strong (as
they
are now) this percentage increases. What's more, another 25%
of the
wood cut for lumber nonetheless ends up as pulp produced
from
mill residue.
The
B.C. Ministry of Forests fined MacMillan Bloedel 33 times from
1992 to
1994 for violating environmental regulations, according to
information
gathered by the Clayoquot Coalition.
Clearcutting
is driven by international market demand for forest
products.
As the world's largest consumer of B.C. forest products,
the
U.S. wields profound influence over the fate of B.C. forest
ecosystems. Therefore, efforts to stop clearcutting must
include
redirecting
international forest-product markets.
There's
a lot of room for improvement. Newsprint currently
averages
just 25%-recycled content, although paper with more than
70%
post-consumer content has been successful tested. Alternative
fibers
like kenaf, wheat chaff, and flax can replace most or all
virgin
tree-fiber paper products. We all use phone books and
newsprint.
We must all demand change.
What
you can do
Please
write letters to Pacific Bell, GTE, and The New York Times
encouraging
them to cease their contracts with MacMillan Bloedel
and
stop using pulp and paper derived from clearcutting ancient
forests.
Activists in California, where local long-distance phone
service
was just deregulated, can let Pacific Bell and GTE know
that
using ancient forests for pulp may cost them business. New
York
Times readers could reconsider their subscriptions.
Write
or Call:
Phil
Quigley, Chairman & CEO
Pacific
Telesis
140 New
Montgomery Street, 18th Floor
San
Francisco, CA 94105
1-800-303-3000
(CA only) or 1-415-542-5004
Charles
Lee, CEO
GTE
1
Stamford Forum
Stamford,
Conn 06904
1-800-982-6347
or 1-203-965-2000
Stephen
Golden, Vice President
The New
York Times Company
229
West 43rd Street
New
York, NY 10036
1-800-631-2500
or 1-212-556-1694
Sample
Letter:
I was
appalled to learn that your publication contains pulp
clearcut
from ancient temperate rainforests. Using these precious
forests
for throwaway paper products is shortsighted and immoral.
Your
purchasing decisions contribute to the liquidation of
Clayoquot
Sound, one of the last large fragments of rare old-
growth
ecosystems. Please suspend your contract with MacMillan
Bloedel
until it stops clearcutting Clayoquot Sound. I urge you to
switch
to ecologically sound suppliers, cut waste, and increase
your
use of recycled and alternative fibers.
------------------------------------------------------------
>From
World Rainforest Report, April - June 1995
Published
by:
Rainforest
Action Network
450
Sansome St., Suite 700
San
Francisco, CA 94111, U.S.A.
Automatic
info: ran-info@igc.apc.org
URL
World Wide Web page: http://www.ran.org/ran/
Tel: (415) 398-4404
Fax: (415) 398-2732
Rainforest Action Network works to
protect the Earth's
rainforests
and support the rights of their inhabitants through
education,
grassroots organizing, and non-violent direct action.
###RELAYED
TEXT ENDS###
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encouraged to utilize this information for personal
campaign
use; including writing letters, organizing campaigns and
forwarding. All efforts are made to provide accurate,
timely
pieces;
though ultimate responsibility for verifying all
information
rests with the reader. Check out our
Gaia Forest
Conservation
Archives at URL=
http://forests.lic.wisc.edu/forests/gaia.html
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