Greenpeace Says Agriculture to Blitz Forests the Size of Spain
At least 50 million hectares of forest -- an area equal to the size of Spain -- is likely to have been destroyed worldwide by agriculture in the decade through to the start of 2020, according to Greenpeace International.Bloomberg, 12 June 2019
, , deforestation , brands, responsible sourcing
Palm oil firms tackling deforestation seen giving better returns
Investors in the palm oil industry are better off buying shares of companies that have been certified as sustainable producers, according to a Washington-based consultancy.The Edge Market, 12 June 2019
, Palm Oil, deforestation
Brazil's President Is Making It Impossible to Fight Deforestation, Activists Say
In May, deforestation throughout the Amazon rose 34% compared to the year before, the highest level ever recorded, Mongabay reports.Global Citizen, 12 June 2019
Brazil, Soy, Timber, Beef, deforestation
Ethical wood body warns Indonesian palm oil firm over forest clearing
An international green certification body said Indonesian member firm Korindo Group breached its rules on clearing forests to grow oil palm but would not be expelled after a two-year probe.The Malaysian Reserve, 12 June 2019
, Palm Oil, Timber, Soy, Beef, EU, deforestation , responsible sourcing
From rare earths to soy, the trade war will force the US and China to diversify supply
The US has started looking into alternative suppliers for the elements that power hi-tech. Beijing has already done the same with soy, and even a trade war resolution won't stop this processSouth China Morning Post, 12 June 2019
China, United States, Soy, soy trade war, US-China trade war
“Alarmingly low” sustainable, responsible and no-deforestation imports for soy and palm oil in EU, claims report
Europe is “dangerously behind” when it comes to meeting its responsible sourcing and no-deforestation pledges, according to sustainable trade initiative IDHFood Ingredients First, 12 June 2019
Europe, Palm Oil, deforestation, Sustainable sourcing
Out on a limb: Unlikely collaboration boosts orangutans in Borneo
Groups in Indonesia are protecting orangutans by looking out for the people they share the forest with.Mongabay, 12 June 2019
Indonesia, Palm Oil, Timber, deforestation, orangutan
50 million hectares destroyed as companies disregard zero deforestation pledge
Four of Australia’s largest banks have helped enable deforestation and environmental abuses in global palm oil supply chains by providing more than $6 billion in financing to some of the sector’s largest and most suspect operators, a new Friends of the Earth Australia (FoE) report has claimed.Ekklesia, 12 June 2019
Australia, , deforestation, zero deforestation pledge, Amazon, Congo Basin
Legislation fix set to curb illegal logging
Law governing Fiji's forestry industry are about to change and this is being done to curb illegal logging practices, which have been damaging forests and reducing revenue for resource owners.Fiji Sun, 12 June 2019
, Timber, Illegal logging, deforestation
Group tackles forestry crimes
Five new chainsaws and six makeshift tractors were impounded by the Prey Preah Roka Forest Community Network (PPRFCN) and rangers during a three-day forest patrol from June 7-9 in Preah Vihear province.Phnom Penh Post, 12 June 2019
Cambodia, Timber, Illegal logging
Forest fire pushes imperilled parrot closer to the brink
A devastating forest fire in Nicaragua has destroyed a vitally important nesting and roosting site of the yellow-naped amazon, one of the most endangered parrots in Central America.Phys, 11 June 2019
, Timber, forest fire, parrot, wildlife refuge, Pena inculta, Illegal logging
Indonesia to fix temporary ban on new forest clearing for plantations and logging
A provisional moratorium on issuing forest-clearing permits for plantations and logging is expected to be made permanent, Indonesian officials have announced.Eco-Business, 11 June 2019
Indonesia, Timber, Palm Oil, forest moratorium, deforestation
Jubek seizes trucks smuggling teak to Uganda
The government of Jubek state has seized three trucks that were trying to smuggle teak to Uganda, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry has said.Eye Radio, 11 June 2019
Uganda, Timber, Illegal logging
The EU’s Inconsistency Towards Malaysia and Palm Oil
A new EU document commenting on Malaysia’s record on ‘human rights and democracy’ exposes the inconsistency in EU policy towards Malaysia, and specifically Malaysia’s major export commodity, palm oil.The Oil Palm, 11 June 2019
Europe, Malaysia, Palm Oil, human rights and democracy, eu palm oil ban
Food producers, sellers can track deforestation risks in real time
Food retailers and producers can monitor deforestation risks throughout their supply chains in real time using satellite images accessed via a new website, developers said on Tuesday. Led by the Global Forest Watch team at the Washington-based World Resources Institute (WRI), the GFW Pro platform enables commodity producers and buyers, investors and green groups to act faster to protect forests. More than 80 commodities companies and organisations are already using the website, including Cargill, Golden Agri-Resources, Louis Dreyfus Company, Mondelez, Olam, Procter & Gamble and Unilever.The Hindu Business Line, 11 June 2019
, Soy, Palm Oil, Timber, Beef, Global Forest Watch, Pro GWF
ENVIRONMENT:352,000 hectares of Panama forest ravaged
Panama lost between 352 000 hectares of forests, between 2000 and 2017almost equivalent to the whole of Los Santos province (380,000 hectares) and more than that of Herrera (234,000 hectares) says Environmental Advocacy Center (CIAM).MENAFN, 11 June 2019
, Timber, deforestation
Is your wood from a legal source? This test can tell (video)
https://www.bbc.com/news/av/stories-48586837/is-your-wood-from-a-legal-source-this-test-can-tellBBC, 11 June 2019
, Timber, legal source, Illegal logging
Championing palm oil's cause
A recent European Union (EU) plan proposing to restrict palm oil in its biofuel programme has once again put the palm oil industry into public scrutiny, requiring palm oil producers to demonstrate their commitment to sustainable production.New Straits Times, 11 June 2019
Malaysia, Palm Oil, palm oil ban, EU ban
Trees and the laws of supply and demand
Worldwide, Interpol and the United Nations Environment Programme estimate the value of the yearly trade in illegal harvested timber at between US$30 billion and $100 billion, or 10-30% of global wood trade.Corporate Knights, 10 June 2019
, Timber, illegal harvesting
The Nature of Social Justice Advocacy and Local Resistance to Land Concession in Liberia: Impact on Land Governance system, Customary Land Rights and State Response
One of the decisive moments in social justice advocacies for land rights in the recent history of Liberia came in 2011, when rural communities, wrote a letter of complaint against the Sime Darby Plantation Company to the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO). The communities letter of complaint essentially cited violations of land rights, accompanied by disruptions to the socio-economic and cultural life of the local communities, and failure by the company to abide by the principle of Free, Prior, Informed, Consent (FPIC).The Front Page Africa Online, 10 June 2019
Liberia, Palm Oil, FPIC, RSPO
Minister Speaks Against Rosewood Exploitation
The Savannah Regional Minister, Salifu Adam Braimah, has appealed to chiefs in the region to desist from assisting Chinese nationals to engage in the exploitation of rosewood in the region.Peace FM Online, 10 June 2019
Ghana, Timber, illegal timber trading, rosewood, Pterocarpus erinaceus
NGOs Raise Concerns Over Illegal Logging
Illegal logging and timber trafficking are continuing with impunity as local administrators and government officials become complacent under the country’s single-party rule, two NGO officers said.Vod Hot News, 10 June 2019
Cambodia, Timber, Illegal logging
How illegal rosewood logging is destroying lives in rural communities
The illegal logging of the expensive rosewood species has continued in the northern parts of Ghana despite a 2014 government ban, destroying the lives of residents there.My Joy Online , 10 June 2019
Ghana, Timber, rosewood, Pterocarpus erinaceus
Panama cutting it’s own throat, as Darien logging activity kills swathe of vital land.
The country lost between 2000 and 2017 about 352 thousand hectares of forests, due to activities such as agriculture, logging or construction. This figure is equivalent to the total extension of the province of Los Santos (380 thousand hectares) and exceeds that of Herrera (234 thousand 100 hectares).Panama Now Online, 10 June 2019
, Timber, Illegal logging, tropical forest
A number of cadres receive money from the smuggled wooden boss "Bart"
On June 9, the Dak Nong Provincial People's Committee announced that it had just filed a lawsuit against 25 defendants in Phan Huu Phuong's illegal logging and transport line (SN 1968, resident of Cu Jut County, Dak Nong Province would have, ie Phuong "beard") for "Violation of regulations on the use, protection of forests and forest products", "Bringing bribes" and "Taking bribes" as well as "Abuse of positions and powers during the exam service".News Beezer, 09 June 2019
Viet Nam, Timber, illegal timber trading, Illegal logging