Large-Scale Tree Plantations

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A Collection of Articles Published in the WRM Bulletin on the issue of Resistance, Women and the Impacts of Plantations.

September 21, the International Day Against Monoculture Tree Plantations, is a day for organizations, networks and movements to celebrate resistance and raise their voices to demand, “Stop the Expansion of Monoculture Tree Plantations!” These plantations threaten the sovereignty of communities and peoples. The Day was launched in 2004 at a meeting of a community network struggling against industrial tree plantations in Brazil; September 21 was chosen because it is the Day of the Tree in Brazil.

Despite that most forest fires in Indonesia started within expanding oil palm plantation concession areas, companies are not being persecuted. (Available in Indonesian).

Tree plantation companies have enormous power and impunity in Chile. The fires of 2017 demonstrated the collusion between these companies and public officials to prevent investigations and criminalize the Mapuche indigenous people

Since the native vegetation that surrounded Quito was destroyed to make way for eucalyptus and pine plantations, the forest fires that the city faces year after year have been intensifying.

In 1989, there was a war in the valley of Lila, Portugal. Hundreds of people gathered to destroy 200 hectares of eucalyptus, fearing that the trees would rob them of their water and bring fire.

In 2016, a TV station in France (Channel 2) aired a report that told the story of Vincent Bolloré, a businessman who heads the oil palm plantation company, Bolloré, a subsidiary of the multinational company, Socfin. The television report showed the social and environmental abuses committed in Cameroon by the company, Socapalm, another subsidiary of Socfin. Vincent Bolloré owns 38.7% of the shares of Socfin. In a clear intimidation strategy, the businessman decided to take the journalist to court on charges of defamation.

An article by Transparency International shows how the political establishment of Portugal—which should be managing the forest, territorial planning, and firefighting and prevention measures—is held hostage to influential business interests. According to the article, this explains why so many people die and so much area is destroyed by fires year after year.

Transgenic Trees Will Expand the Disaster of Tree Plantations. Already in Chile monoculture plantations of pine and eucalyptus are producing terrible impacts on rural communities, on people’s health, access to water, agriculture and forests.

DRC is following the trend of promoting programmes to ‘integrate’ peasants with agribusinesses, putting people’s control over their lands at risk.