. Earth Science News .
WOOD PILE
Investors want 'results' on deforestation: Brazil VP
by Staff Writers
Bras�lia (AFP) July 9, 2020

Colombia lost forest area the size of Sao Paulo in 2019: report
Bogota (AFP) July 9, 2020 - Colombia lost 159,000 hectares of forest -- an area the size of Brazilian megacity Sao Paulo -- to deforestation in 2019, according to an official report presented on Thursday.

Although considerable, it represents a 19 percent reduction in deforestation compared to the 197,000 hectares destroyed in 2018. In 2017, that figure was 219,000.

"We've managed to control a growing trend of deforestation," said Maria Claudia Garcia, the deputy minister for the environment and sustainable development.

"The results are promising but this isn't a triumphalist message."

Yolanda Gonzalez, director of the state Institute of Hydrology, Meteorology and Environmental Studies (IDEAM), said it was "good news."

Some 62 percent of the deforestation was in the Amazon, the world's largest rainforest that spans across Colombia, Brazil, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela.

The loss of forest was worst in departments blighted by armed criminal groups.

However, IDEAM's forests system coordinator Edersson Cabrera pointed to the "significant slowdown" in the Amazon region, which accounted for 70 percent of the country's deforestation in 2018.

The main causes of loss of forests are an increase in farmland, illegal logging and mining, and drug plantations, which according to the United Nations accounted for 154,000 hectares in 2019.

Colombia, one of the most biodiverse countries in the world, has committed to reducing deforestation in the Amazon to zero in 2020, although experts doubt it can realistically achieve that target.

International investors want Brazil to show "results" in fighting Amazon deforestation before they will consider participating in environmental protection projects in the country, Vice President Hamilton Mourao said Thursday after speaking with the funds.

"At no time did investors commit with resources, they want to see results... to do with the reduction in deforestation," Mourao, who heads the National Amazon Council, told reporters.

At the end of June, investment funds from Europe, Asia and South America that collectively administer close to $4 trillion in assets wrote an open letter to the government of President Jair Bolsonaro, urging the end of projects that threaten to accelerate the destruction of the world's largest rainforest.

And this week, 40 Brazilian and foreign businesspeople told Mourao they were concerned about the impact of Brazil's environmental policies on the country's image.

Bolsonaro, a climate change skeptic, has facilitated farming and mining projects on protected land and indigenous reserves.

Mourao said the government was the target of "unjust" criticisms.

"It's not true that we're destroying the jungle to produce food," he said, also denying that Brazil was dismantling the state's environmental protection structure.

Brazilian prosecutors have called for the dismissal of the environment minister, alleging he contributed to increased deforestation and fires in the Amazon by removing measures designed to protect the rainforest.

Recent data showed the Brazilian Amazon suffered its worst month of May for deforestation since records began in 2015.

Almost 3,000 square kilometers (1,150 square miles) of tropical rainforest were lost, some 20 percent more than in May 2019.

There's also been a marked increase in forest fires, just as the dry season begins.

Mourao was joined in the meeting by the ministers of foreign relations, environment and agriculture and the Central Bank president.

The ministers announced that next week the government will publish a decree prohibiting for 120 days the use of fire for agricultural purposes in the rainforest.

"Protection and preservation won't happen without development, they're aspects that need to go together," said Mourao.


Related Links
Forestry News - Global and Local News, Science and Application


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


WOOD PILE
French shipping giant to stop Gambian timber exports over smuggling fears
Dakar (AFP) July 8, 2020
French shipping giant CMA CGM said Wednesday that it would suspend all timber exports from the West African state of The Gambia over illegal rosewood-smuggling fears. The West African rosewood tree is an internationally protected species, but is overexploited because of high demand for its darkly hued timber, which is popular with furniture makers. CMA CGM said in a statement on Wednesday that it was suspending all timber exports from The Gambia until further notice due to suspicions that it ha ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

WOOD PILE
Myanmar army sacks officers over landslide tragedy

Iran reports 'accident' at nuclear site, warns enemies

US installing AI-based border monitoring system

More than 160 dead in Myanmar jade mine landslide

WOOD PILE
Geologists identify deep-earth structures that may signal hidden metal lodes

Europe radioactivity likely linked to nuclear reactor: UN watchdog

Deutsche Bank teams up with Google in cloud services

The lightest shielding material in the world

WOOD PILE
Sudan says talks on Nile dam resumed with Egypt, Ethiopia

Ancient Polynesians, Native Americans made contact before Europeans arrived

New technology combines wood, bacteria, sunlight to purify water

Sea turtles find protection from Senegal fishermen

WOOD PILE
Pink ice in Italy's Alps sparks algae probe

Arctic plants may not provide predicted carbon sequestration potential

In the Arctic, spring snowmelt triggers fresh CO2 production

Gnawing beavers could accelerate thawing of Arctic permafrost

WOOD PILE
Overharvesting threatens 'Himalayan Viagra' fungus: IUCN

China aims to phase out sale of live poultry at food markets

Nepal offers locust bounty as swarms threaten crops

Antibiotic use on crops isn't being monitored in most countries

WOOD PILE
Japan rescuers battle to reach thousands trapped by floods

Typhoon changed earthquake patterns

50 dead in Japan floods as rescuers 'race against time'

Rain pounds central Japan, 55 feared dead in south

WOOD PILE
DR Congo troops kill Angolan soldier in border incident

South Africa deploys military medics to virus hotspot

Nine Mali soldiers killed in ambush: army

Senegal capital fights shoreline developers

WOOD PILE
Racism in the UK: the effects of a 'hostile environment'

Early peoples in Pacific Northwest were smoking smooth sumac

In the wild, chimpanzees are more motivated to cooperate than bonobos

Archaeologists find ancient circle of deep shafts near Stonehenge









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.