Brazilian Environmental Plan Labeled "Insufficient"

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WORLDWIDE FOREST/BIODIVERSITY CAMPAIGN NEWS

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Forest Networking a Project of Ecological Enterprises

http://forests.org/

7/19/98

OVERVIEW & COMMENTARY by EE

The recently announced plan to protect 10 percent of the Amazon region

has been labeled as "insufficient". While a promising start, past

plans to protect the Amazon have proven to be political rhetoric. And

protecting 10 percent of the world's most important ecosystem still

leaves 90% to be ravaged--a clearly unacceptable outcome from a global

perspective.

g.b.

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Title: WWF Brazil Caught in Conservation Conflict

Source: Environmental News Service

Date: July 14, 1998

BRASILIA, Brasil, July 14, 1998 (ENS) - Four leading Brasilian

environmental groups have critized as "insufficient" a plan to protect

10 percent of the Amazon region issued by the Brazilian government,

the World Bank, and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) two months ago.

Through the establishment of environmental conservation areas of

indirect use, the WWF, the Bank and the government of Brazil intend to

set aside 25 million hectares (62 million acres) of new protected

forest areas by the year 2000. This is the largest conservation move

ever in the Amazon.

This commitment is the first outcome of a unique alliance between the

World Bank and WWF to help conserve a network of forests around the

world. On April 29, to launch Brazil's commitment, President Fernando

Cardoso signed decrees for two new protected areas in the Brazilian

Amazon, and two in the Atlantic Forest, totaling 600,000 hectares (1.5

million acres).

The Brazilian NGO and Social Moviments Forum for Development and

Environment (Forum Brasileiro de ONGs); Rubbertappers Nacional Council

(CNS); the Amazon Working Group (GTA); and the Brazil Network on

Multilateral Financial Institutions (Rede Brasil) released a statement

July 1 saying the plan fails to take into account the rights of

traditional populations.

Amazon indigenous residents. Photos (c) Raintree Nutrition, Inc.

"In addition, we consider that the quantitative goal of this campaign

- ten percent before the year 2000 - as randomly chosen, inadequate,

and ignorant to the reality of Brazil."

The groups say ten percent is an unacceptably low goal, but on the

other hand, ten percent is excessive for the exclusive creation of

areas of indirect use, when there are as yet no studies or dependable

data to answer the question of the availability of such a large amount

of land without the presence of indigenous populations or

extractivists.

"We also do not understand the selection of the year 2000 as a

deadline, considering that currently less than four percent of the

Amazon is reserved for conservation areas of indirect use, and a major

part of that has only been formed on paper."

Today, the World Wildlife Fund had some criticisms of its own in

response to the groups' statement. Garo Batmanian executive director

of WWF Brasil said, "It should be noted that three of the four

signatories are Executive Secretaries of network organizations who are

signing exclusively in their personal capacities," the WWF said. "The

member organizations of these networks were not consulted and can in

no way be associated with the letter; in fact WWF is a member of one

of these organizations."

The WWF agrees with the characterization of the plan as insufficient.

"We do not consider that this characterization differs from our own

position. WWF has never affirmed that conservation in the Amazon

should be limited to 10 percent of its area, nor that protection

should consist exclusively of full-protection conservation units, nor

that conservation should be limited to the Amazon biome," Batmanian

wrote.

Contrary to what the letter suggests, the WWF says the process for

selecting and setting aside these protected areas considers the

participation of traditional forest peoples and other local interests

through a series of national and state workshops.

"WWF defends this process and will seek to have traditional

populations represented on the Committee," Batmanian stated. "For WWF,

there is no way to work on the issue of parks without having a

participatory process, involving local populations through their

legitimate leaders - a practice we have adopted in all the projects we

implement.

Still, the four groups stress, "These populations today live in

miserable conditions, without access to consistent government support

to develop their traditional economic activities, or even to guarantee

minimum prices for their products, the making of which essentially

depends on the continued existence of the forest."

They point out that the Brazilian government has not managed to

finance the protected areas which already exist. "It is of common

knowledge that, were it not for the resistence of these populations to

the preditorial behavior of large estate owners, lumber companies,

prospectors, and political forces (with some honorable exceptions),

the Amazon today would be in an even worse condition."

For its part, the WWF's Batmanian held out the prospect of cooperation

with the critical groups. "We agree with the suggestion to direct the

discussion to a larger vision, that establishes guidelines and wide-

ranging actions for conservation and development of Amazonia. We

reiterate our invitation for all environmental and social

organizations to unite around this common challenge."

ENS - Environment News Service

http://www.lycos.com/envirolink/news/stories/3357.html

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