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WORLDWIDE
FOREST/BIODIVERSITY CAMPAIGN NEWS
Gabon
Update: FSC Withdraws Certification of Large African Old-Growth
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Forest
Networking a Project of Ecological Enterprises
http://forests.org/
10/13/97
OVERVIEW,
SOURCE & COMMENTARY by EE
Attached
is an update relating to the recently distributed Rainforest
Action
Network action alert regarding certification of large-scale
logging
of virgin forests in Gabon, Africa. The
issue of
certification
of forest products in old-growth forests, and whether
best
management practices justifies their logging, is a highly
contentious
issue. My personal take on it is that
there are occasions
where
the social and economic circumstances may necessitate logging of
old-growth
forests under a certified management system.
However, my
concern
is that the implementation of sound management not be used as
an
excuse to log all remaining virgin forests.
Certified forestry
needs
to be coupled to outright protection for adjoining large blocks
of
intact forest. Only then is it
realistic to expect that a forest
ecosystem
under management can aspire to sustainability in the long-
term. I say this fully realizing the potential for
differences of
opinion
on this matter.
g.b.
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RELAYED
TEXT STARTS HERE:
Title: Gabon Rainforest Gets New Lease on Life
FSC Steps Up to Bat
Source: Rainforest Action Network Action Alert Update
Status: Distribute freely, non-commercially and
with accreditation
Date: 10/10/97
Action
Alert 131 - October 1997
Rainforest
Action Network
Attention:
Our current Action Alert was a success! Click here for
background
info. See below for details!
Gabon
Rainforest Gets New Lease on Life FSC Steps Up to Bat
The
rain-forests of Gabon, in Africa, may yet provide a place to live
for the
rare lowland gorillas. Last month's Action Alert focused on
the
case of Leroy-Gabon's logging operations, and highlighted problems
developing
with environmental timber certification. The international
body
that certifies ecologically sound logging, the Forest Stewardship
Council
(FSC), has been taking the concerns very seriously.
FSC has
decided that the Leroy-Gabon logging operations do not deserve
to be
certified and that the certification "should be withdrawn
immediately."
In addition, the FSC has taken a number of steps to keep
this
from happening anywhere else and to ensure that the certification
company
working in Africa cannot make similar mistakes again.
The FSC
has put a 6-month moratorium "on all new certificates for
forest
management operations that involve timber harvesting in primary
[old
growth] forests."
All of
this is great news in terms of getting ecotimber into the
marketplace
so that consumers have a choice not to buy wood from
destructive
logging operations.
What You Can Do!
Please
write to FSC and congratulate them for taking such strong
action
on this case.
Here is
a sample letter that send to FSC and congratulate them for
taking
such a strong action on this case:
Ms.
Jamison Ervin
Forest
Stewardship Council
RD 1,
Box 182
Waterbury,
VT 05676
Dear
Ms. Ervin,
I am
writing to thank you and the Forest Stewardship Council for
withdrawing
certification for Leroy-Gabon's logging operations in the
old
growth forests of Gabon.
This
decisive action on your part protects a valuable portion of
Africa's
last remaining lowland rainforest, and shows that the FSC is
not
going to take a strong stand on logging in old growth forests.
Most
importantly, FSC's action demonstrates that certified timber can
indeed
be a viable option for consumers who refuse to buy wood from
destructive
logging operations.
Sincerely,
###RELAYED
TEXT ENDS###
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