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United States and Indonesia to fight illegal logging Rhett A. Butler, mongabay.com April 5, 2006 The United States and Indonesia today agreed to fight illegal logging in some of the world's most diverse rainforests. "This is a place where good trade policy and good environmental policy intersect. Illegal logging depresses timber prices and damages the environment," Portman told reporters at a joint news conference. "Together we will seek to take concrete steps such as increasing law enforcement and promoting public-private partnerships to tackle a pressing environmental problem while facilitating trade. We will work together as wise stewards of the environment and global markets at the same time... This is a unique opportunity to strengthen our cooperation with Indonesia to better protect Indonesia’s parks, forests and sensitive habitats from illegal logging." While Indonesia houses the most extensive rainforest cover in all of Asia, its natural forest area is rapidly being reduced by logging--most of which is illegal. Between 1990 and 2005 the country lost more than 28 million hectares of forest, including 21.7 million hectares of virgin forest, according to data from the United Nations. In some areas, like the remote province of Irian Jaya on the island of New Guinea, as much as 80 percent of timber is illegally harvested according to a report released last month by the Environmental Investigation Agency, an international environmental group. Logging concessions have been linked to the illegal wildlife trade as well.
Forest management in Indonesia has long been plagued by corruption. Underpaid government officials combined with the prevalence of disreputable businessmen and shifty politicians, mean logging bans go unenforced, trafficking in endangered species is overlooked, environmental regulations are ignored, parks are used as timber farms, and fines and prison sentences never come to pass. Corruption was cemented in place under the rule of ex-president General Haji Mohammad Soeharto (Suharto), who gained control in 1967 after participating in a 1965 seizure of power by the military. Under his rule, cronyism was rife, and many of his close relatives and associates built up tremendous wealth through subsidies and unfair business practices. Today the Indonesian government is taking steps to address illegal logging, but it cannot tackle the trade on its own. To succeed, the country needs help from consuming nations. Forging ties with the United States--the world's largest economy--may be the best way to slow deforestation while protecting Indonesia's environment. News index | RSS | Add to MyYahoo! Advertisements: Organic Apparel from Patagonia | Insect-repelling clothing |
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