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PAPUA
NEW GUINEA RAINFOREST CAMPAIGN NEWS
Prime
Minister Gets Plan to Clearcut Collingwood Bay
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Forest
Networking a Project of Ecological Enterprises
6/25/96
OVERVIEW
& SOURCE by EE
In yet
another stunning move to drastically damage PNG's environment, the
PNG
government is moving ahead with a plan to clearcut over 100,000
hectares
of virgin lowland rainforest for the Collingwood Bay
"agroforestry"
(read my lips, clearcutting) project.
This idea continues
to move
along despite near total condemnation from the local people. This
time,
ancient rainforests are to be replaced with a coconut sap project.
Typically,
the "landowner company" is led by a man who it is alledged has
not
been in the area in 20 years, and has not consulted with villagers in
the
area. This area, as well as being one
of the most stunningly beautiful
in
terms of biodiversity and other values, also has a number of small scale
projects
established which seek to sustainably manage the rainforest;
including
galup nut and tapa cloth production. It
would be an act of
environmental
vandalism to clear the area for a coconut plantation,
especially
when thousands of hectares of abandoned and underutilized
plantations
line PNG's north coast. The item from
_The Independent_ by way
of
econet's reg.newguinea conference.
g.b.
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TEXT STARTS HERE:
/**
reg.newguinea: 318.0 **/
**
Topic: 096 PM gets forest plan **
**
Written 1:04 AM Jun 26, 1996 by drobie@pactok.peg.apc.org in
cdp:reg.newgui
nea **
Title
-- PM gets plan to clear cut forest
Date --
23 June 1996
Byline
-- Harlyne Joku
Origin
-- Nius Network
Source
-- The Independent (PNG), 21 June 1996
Copyright
-- The Independent
Status
-- Abridged
-----------------
PM GETS
PLAN TO CLEAR CUT FOREST
By
Harlyne Joku
Documents
relating to a multi-billion coconut sap agro-forestry project for
Oro
province's Collingwood Bay reveal that major initiatives continue to be
planned
and endorsed by the PNG government with little landowner
participation
and approval.
The
documents also confirm that a PNG diplomat supports this foreign
project
proposal which promises an attractive, exhortitant package to
landowners,
a surprising figure of K3.5 billion (sic) annually per
landowner
family.
The
project is yet another controversial agro-forest project.
Landowners
are unaware of the details and oppose it.
It
proposes to develop 120,000 hectares of virgin forest land into dwarf
coconut
farms.
The
purpose is to process fresh coconut sap into a 100 per cent natural
food
and health drink for export.
Project
proponents are Francisco Umali and Edwin Acoba who are
representatives
of Ukadeco Pty Ltd, a company based in the Philippines.
A joint
venture agreement was signed on August 7, 1995, between two
parties,
a landowner company, namely Collingwood Bay-Musa Development
Corporation
Pty Ltd and Ukadeco Pty Ltd in support of this project. It was
witnessed
by the then Oro premier, Douglas Garawa.
The
parties agreed to harvest the logs within the 120,000 hectares of
virgin
forests, about four million cubic metres of logs and plant the same
area
simultaneously with dwarf coconut trees. The project has drawn the
interest
of PNG's Ambassador to the Philippines, James Pokasui.
Mr
Pokasui has written to the Prime Minister, Sir julius Chan, in support
of this
project. A letter dated December 29, 1995, reveals Mr Pokasui's
involvement.
Kipling
Gombo is chairman of the board of directors of Collingwood Bay-Musa
Development
Corporation. According to landowners, Mr Gombo has not lived in
the
Collingwood Bay area for over 20 years and has not talked with the
villagers
about the project.
One
affected landowner, Winta Moi, said: "It is extraordinary. The
landowners
clearly should have been the first to be consulted."
Joseph
Kaa'au, Greenpeace's representative, said: "The total lack of
landowner
participation and the highly secretive manner in which the
agreement
was reached, leaves no doubt in my mind that those involved
should
be thoroughly investigated."
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