Deforestation and widespread burning of the vast Amazon rainforest are on the rise and air quality in the region is suffering. According to satellite data, burnings in the region -whose consequences are similar to those that affected Southeast Asia- are up 28% since last year; combined with logging, about 5,800 square miles of land are deforested each year. Deforestation figures for 1994 -the most recent officially available- show a 34 percent increase since 1991. Another 4,200 square miles are thinned out due to logging alone.
Bulletin articles
Resolution nr 007 of INEFAN -the Ecuadorian Forestry Agency- shows that, surprising as it may seam, it is in the way to permitting mining activities in forests that are part of the State National Forest Heritage. According to the Forestry Law, mining is not included among the authorized activities to be developed within Protective Forests.
The Venezuelan Guayana Corporation (CVG) and Venezuela's Ministry of Energy and Mines (MEM) are shown to have given questionable authorizations to 12 ghost companies to mine within the Imataca Rainforest Reserve. At the same time, the Ministry of the Environment and Renewable Resources (MARNR) is claimed to have topped the irregularities by handing out permits to gold mining companies that didn't even bother to back up their bids for lots showing studies on the impact of mining activities on the eco-system.
Corporacion Mapuche, based in Temuco, Chile, invites you to visit their web page, the first one produced in Mapuche territory. It contains articles, photographs and general information on this indigenous nation.
Our Mapuche friends invite you to send your comments and suggestions,
Papua New Guinea is located in the eastern part of the island of New Guinea and borders with Indonesia. The opening of the economy to foreign penetration has promoted the exploitation of natural resources at a level that has seriously damaged the environment.
The federal government has handed over the regulation of forests to the state of Tasmania in the country's first state-wide Regional Forests Agreement (RFA). Export woodchip quotas have been abolished in a package giving an unprecedented legally binding guarantee against federal interference in a state's forests. North Limited, the biggest woodchip exporter has already announced plans to raise production from Tasmanian native forests, that currently reaches around 3,4 million tonnes annually.
In WRM Bulletin nr. 3 (8/8/97) we informed about the struggle of Friends of Hamakua, in conjunction with local farmers and community organizations, to stop eucalyptus plantations planned by Prudential Insurance Co.and Oji/Paper Marubeni in the Big Island of Hawaii. The organization also presented an alternative land use plan for the area. A final decision by the regional authorities was expected. We are very happy to inform that Friends of Hamakua has sent us a postcard containing the following text:
By way of this document we want to bring to the attention of the Minister of Justice, Iris Resende, the documents no. 08620.1352/97-74 and no. 08620.1353/97-10, which refer to the unification of the indigenous lands Caieiras Velhas and Pau Brasil, and the extension of the indigenous land Comboios. The extension in total of our lands will be more than 13,579 hectares.
Invited by the Thai NGOs PER and TERRA, Ricardo Carrere went to Thailand last November. The trip included visits to the Northeastern provinces of Thailand, where Eucalyptus plantations have generated strong social and environmental impacts and an equally strong resistance movement against them. Ricardo was able to learn from the local experiences and to have a first hand view of the impacts of both plantations and the Phoenix Paper pulp mill. In contrast, villagers also showed Ricardo their experiences in community forest management, aimed at securing local people's livelihoods.
"Join Us in a Shrimp Break, Putting the Brake on Industrial Shrimp" is the motto of a campaign launched by ISA-Net (Industrial Shrimp Action Network) to join this newly created international network in support of environmental and community groups in developing countries fighting against the spread of destructive industrial shrimp farming (see WRM Bulletin Nr. 6, 12/11/97).
“Mangrove Ecosystem Studies in Latin America and Africa” is a publication edited by B. Kjerfve, L/D. de Lacerda and El Hadji Salif Diop and published this year by UNESCO, ISME (International Society for Mangroves Ecosystems) and the Forest Service of the USDA. It includes several scientific case studies -most of them in English- in these two regions. Individuals and organizations involved in the issue can request a free copy to:
As a response to our fax dated 31/10/97 requesting information on the arrest of Nnimmo Bassey, the International Secretariat of the WRM received on 15/12/97 the following answer from the Embassy of Nigeria in Buenos Aires, Argentina:
“Arrest and detention of Mr. Nnimmo Bassey
I am directed to acknowledge receipt of your faxed letter dated 31st october 1997 on the above mentioned subject matter and to request you to please check your facts properly as we are not aware of the arrest and detention of Mr. Bassey as stated in your letter under reference.