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FOREST CONSERVATION NEWS TODAY
Papua New Guinea Predatory Logging Peaking, Stolen Logs Seized
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Forest Networking a Project of Forests.org, Inc.
http://forests.org/ -- Forest Conservation Portal
http://forests.org/web/ -- Discuss Forest Conservation
May 13, 2002
OVERVIEW & COMMENTARY by Forests.org
Papua New Guinea's rainforests are gravely endangered. In recent
months predatory, unlawful logging and trade in ill-gotten forest
products has intensified as the logging boom reaches its peak. PNG
Forest Watch reports PNG's commercially viable rainforests have
essentially been exhausted, leaving the low volume and inaccessible
forests of Western and West Sepik Provinces as the nation's only large
intact rainforest regions (http://www.ecoforestry.org.pg/
and http://www.pngweb.com/articles/reader.asp?linkid=10621). The
massive Wawoi Guavi Timber Permit in Western Province has had its
timber permit illegally extended by the PNG Forest Authority -
threatening the existence of Asia's largest contiguous rainforest
wilderness (http://www.pngweb.com/articles/reader.asp?linkid=10984).
Most of PNG's logs are going to fuel China's insatiable appetite for
ancient forests
(http://www.pngweb.com/articles/reader.asp?linkid=10072).
Meanwhile, a report by Forests.org indicates PNG does not have a
biodiversity conservation strategy due to government inaction and
World Bank neglect ("An Analysis of Papua New Guinea's Implementation
of the Convention on Biological Diversity with a Focus on Forests" at
http://www.pngweb.com/pdf/png/png_cbd_report.pdf). Against this
backdrop, the most recent of the World Bank's programs to reform the
industrial log export industry has commenced - further subsidizing
failed, wasteful, outdated and ecologically damaging forest management
practices (http://www.pngweb.com/articles/reader.asp?linkid=10897).
Cumulatively these developments may damn the World's third largest
rainforest to oblivion.
Against the starkness of PNG's massive rainforest liquidation and
failed rainforest conservation policy development, there have been
some hopeful signs. Forests.org will soon be unveiling the revamped
"Papua New Guinea Rainforest Conservation Portal" at
http://www.pngweb.com/. This is due to generous support from the New
England Biolabs Foundation (http://www.nebf.org/). The site is the
first of its kind PNG rainforest mega-site; tracking latest news,
links, documents and providing insightful commentary. The portal and
Forests.org are is committed to ending industrial log export in PNG
and making community based eco-forestry and protected areas the new
and only PNG rainforest paradigm. We encourage those interested in
PNG rainforest conservation to refer to it often and submit materials
for inclusion on the site.
In another positive development, Greenpeace today launched a massive
protest against illegal and destructive logging in PNG's Kiunga
Aiambak logging project (see below). Protests are based on findings
in their recent report, "Partners in Crime: Malaysian loggers, timber
markets and the politics of self-interest in Papua New Guinea"
(http://www.paradiseforest.org/downloads/partnersincrime.pdf). The
title says it all. Recent protests in PNG are occurring in the
context of massive worldwide actions by Greenpeace against the trade
in illegal forest products. It is encouraging to see Greenpeace doing
in PNG what they do best - high-profile non-violent protest to
highlight environmental injustice. This is good news as their
involvement in PNG rainforest conservation in recent years has been
mostly limited to enabling, through their active participation (often
driving the process), failed World Bank and PNG government forest
reform processes, and has been woefully short on dramatic protests and
hard-line forest conservation messages.
The tragic saga of the demise of PNG's rainforests appears to be
entering an end-game. Predatory loggers prey, policy-makers tinker
and generally environmentalists are ineffective and lack ambition.
There is tremendous potential to conserve and manage PNG's ancient
primary forests in an ecologically sustainable manner for the benefit
of generations to come. However, many forest conservation
stakeholders have shown a remarkable inability to think outside the
box; and develop, finance and implement forest conservation policies
that do not include industrial log export which is inherently
unsustainable. There is tremendous potential to establish payments to
landowners and the government for not commercially developing PNG's
rainforests. Community based eco-forestry and protected areas have
not been fully supported as a means to achieve ecologically
sustainable community development and biodiversity conservation.
If PNG is to largely avoid ecological, social and economic destitution
as the forest boom is followed by an inevitable bust, it is imperative
that commercial log exports be halted immediately. Forests.org
supports a log export ban as the immediate priority for PNG rainforest
conservation. Any program or organization which supports commercial
scale logging and industrial log exports from PNG is part of the
problem and must be stopped. Additionally, it is critical that a
commission of inquiry be established immediately to investigate and
stop spiraling forest robbery.
Below are a few of the many articles available at
http://www.pngweb.com/.
Glen Barry
President
Forests.org, Inc.
P.S. Forests.org very much needs your financial support
(http://forests.org/donate). We do so much with so little resources.
Shortly we will be launching our biennial fund raising drive, as we
complete several new initiatives. In addition to our new PNG
rainforest site at http://www.pngweb.com/ web site, we have been
focusing our attention on the "Eco-Portal - The Environmental
Sustainability.Info Source" at
http://www.EnvironmentalSustainability.info/ which will soon be
officially announced. Having completed these two new sites, our focus
will again be upon this email news service and volumes will return to
normal. Please see http://forests.org/donate/ if you can help
Forests.org at this critical juncture. Modest gifts save forests.
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ITEM #1
Title: Greenpeace Seizes 'Stolen' Papua New Guinea Logs
Source: Greenpeace via Pasifik Nius
Date: May 13, 2002
UMUDA ISLAND, PNG (Pasifik Nius): Greenpeace today stopped the export
of illegally and destructively logged timber from the Kiunga Aiambak
logging project to China by preventing the loading of logs at Umuda
Island, reports a Greenpeace statement.
Climbers from the Greenpeace vessel, the MV Arctic Sunrise are
blocking the crane of the log ship, the Hua Yang. Volunteers are also
occupying the log barge and have hung a banner reading "Ancient Forest
Crime".
"We are taking this action at the request of landowners in the Kiunga-
Aiambak area. There has been a lot of talk about the need to close
this project down from politicians, academics and others, most
recently at a roundtable discussion aboard the Arctic Sunrise. Now it
is time for action," says Greenpeace campaigner Bianca Havas.
Last month, Lake Murray Resource Owners Association president Sep
Galeva visited Port Moresby to ask the government to stop all logging
operations in the area. Most of the logs are exported to China, Japan
and Korea, where they are used to make furniture, flooring and cheap
plywood.
Landowners say this logging is causing them social and economic
hardship. A series of politicians and bureaucrats have helped the
logging company, Concord Pacific, to operate illegally. The road
Concord Pacific is claiming to build in the name of "development" is
already impassable in many places.
"The Government should seize the assets of Concord Pacific in order to
reimburse landowners for their losses; reject any application to
extend the project; investigate and prosecute those involved in the
scandal, and permanently revoke Concord Pacific's status as a 'Forest
Industries Participant'," said Greenpeace forests specialist Brian
Brunton.
"Our action is also an appeal to governments to commit to stopping
this type of destructive logging in the lead-up to the Johannesburg
Earth Summit in August," Brunton said.
Greenpeace wants governments to prohibit the importation of Concord
Pacific's products; demand all wood and wood products entering
national ports come from legal and well managed forest operations
conforming to Forest Stewardship Council standards (1); and provide
money to pay for forest conservation and sustainable development in
countries such as Papua New Guinea.
Today's action follows anti-logging activity in Hong Kong last week.
Greenpeace China volunteers served a symbolic "injunction" on
Chinese company Lei Sing Hong, asking it to stop importing logs from
Concord Pacific.
For more information contact: Brian Brunton, Greenpeace Forests
Specialist on 693 0390, Bianca Havas, forests campaigner aboard the MV
Arctic Sunrise on ++872 130 2577 (satellite costs apply) Samantha
Magick, communications officer on 693 0391. Olivia Bradley for images
and video on ++612 9263 0350 or email { HYPERLINK
mailto:olivia.bradley@au.greenpeace.org
}olivia.bradley@au.greenpeace.org.
Note to editors: (1) The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is the only
independent certification system that meets international ecological
standards, incorporates the interests of social, economic and
environmental groups, and has a widely recognised label. This system
assures the chain of custody from the extraction of wood, through
processing to the final consumer. Unless independently certified at
least according to ecological standards of the FSC, it is not possible
to guarantee that logging practices are legal and do not lead to
ancient forest destruction.
ITEM #2
Title: PNG Forest resources almost exhausted
Source: Copyright 2002, PNG Forest Watch
Date: April 29, 2002
PNGs forest resources are almost finished as far as commercial logging
goes. That is the conclusion in a devastating new report published
this week.
The report shows that PNG has already lost most of its high commercial
value forests, and that most current logging operations are operating
on an unsustainable basis.
"This report gives us the first clear picture of what is happening to
our forests and shows us the truth behind industry claims that the
logging industry is in decline", says the PNG Eco-Forestry Forum. "The
decline is not because of high taxes or low prices, but because the
overseas loggers are cutting in an unsustainable way and using up the
forest areas in just a few years".
"The logging industry has already finished most of our high value
forest in the New Guinea island region and what we have left is only
the low volume and inaccessible forests of Western and West Sepik
Provinces."
The report, "PNG Forest resources and the Log Export Industry" is
based on official but unpublished Government data. The report assesses
the amount of forest resources in PNG and the impact of commercial
logging as well as the future for the log export industry.
The report has found that PNG has about 26 million hectares of forest
and some 11 million hectares of this is suitable for commercial
logging. But with 7 million hectares already allocated, the best
forests have already gone
The report also highlights that most logging concessions only last 11
or 12 years, not the 40 years that is specified in logging agreements.
This means that most operations that started in the early 1990's will
finish in the next few years.
The report also concludes that even if another 2.5 million hectares of
new concessions are handed out to logging companies, log exports will
not rise above their current levels.
Copies of the Report can be obtained from the PNG Eco-Forestry Forum
or downloaded from their website at www.ecoforestry.org.pg
Port Moresby
17th April 2002
PNG Forest Resources and the Log Export Industry
An quantative analysis of forest resources, the impact of commercial
logging and the future for the log export industry
Executive Summary
PNG is internationally acclaimed for the extent and the enormous
diversity of its forests. But how much forest does PNG really have?
What has been the impact of large-scale commercial logging? And what
is the future for the log export industry?
This paper provides some definitive answers to these questions based
on a comprehensive analysis of the available literature and official
data. PNG has some 26 million hectares of forest. Of this forest area
about 11 million hectares is suitable for possible commercial
exploitation and 7 million hectares has already been allocated for
large-scale commercial logging.
The log export industry was initially focused on the Islands region
because of high stocking densities and easy access. Although the area
under concession quadrupled between 1982 and 1991 there was no
corresponding increase in reported log export volumes - clear evidence
that there was widespread fraud and illegality.
Since then, as the island resources have been exhausted the logging
companies have been forced onto the mainland where they have had to
acquire ever-larger concessions in order to remain profitable.
The log export industry in PNG peaked in the mid 1990's when log
export levels reached about 3 million cubic metres each year. However,
since then there has been a steady decline in export volumes to 1.5
million cubic metres in 2001. This has been caused by the resource
rich concessions being logged out and the companies being forced into
less desirable forest areas with lower stocking densities - the best
commercial forests have already been lost.
The maximum sustainable harvest from the 11 million hectares of forest
that is suitable for large-scale exploitation is no more than 2
million cubic metres per annum. However sustainability is a very
difficult concept.
In PNG, sustainability has been defined as a 40-year cutting cycle (ie
it is assumed that if only 1/40th of the available timber in a
concession is cut each year, the forest will regenerate at a rate
equal to what is being cut). However this assumption is not based on
any scientific evidence and most commentators believe that a more
realistic figure would be 70 not 40 years. But even using the 40-year
figure, analysis shows that only 25% of logging concessions in PNG are
cutting at or below the sustainable rate and the rest are all cutting
at more than twice the sustainable level. Although timber concessions
are supposed to last 35 or 40 years, the vast majority are exhausted
within 11 or 12.
So what is the future for the log export industry?
The situation now is that most of the easily accessible, high volume
forest has already been exploited. If no new concessions are granted
then log exports will fall steadily to 400,000 cubic metres in 2004
and 100,000 cubic metres by 2010.
But even if the 10 new concessions covering a total area of some 2.5
million hectares and identified in the Independent Forestry Review as
possibly suitable for commercial logging, are brought into production
then log exports will only remain at their current level of around 1.5
million cubic metres. In this scenario, this level of exports will
continue until about 2015 and rapidly decline thereafter.
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