- Of this lost forest, 90,000 hectares were in the environmental corridor that connects the national natural parks of La Macarena and Serranía del Chiribiquete.
- The government was late to arrive at the territories left by the now-extinct FARC guerrilla group.
- New paramilitary groups, including the ELN guerrillas, criminal gangs and drug trafficking enterprises have taken control of the territory, causing immense environmental and social damage.
- The region is now facing an acceleration of what many have long feared: deforestation, land grabbing, expansion of the agricultural frontier and an increase in illicit crops and illegal mining.
Tropical forests
The government of Guatemala has suspended U.S. miner Tahoe Resources’ licenses after finding that the company failed to consult with a local indigenous group (Reuters).
A Nigerian NGO reports that the country has lost 96 percent of its original forest cover (Premium Times).
India has put together a strategy for REDD+, which stands for reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (Daily Pioneer, The Times of India).
Drones give forest ecologists a new vantage point (CIFOR Forests News).
A move to allow industrial logging in the Democratic Republic of Congo could devastate the country’s forests, conservationists say (Al Jazeera).
Africa needs a “green revolution” to feed itself, experts say (Devex).
Officials say they have documented nearly 190 cases of illegal logging in Malaysia in the past decade (The Sun Daily).
Illegal logging is impacting Panama’s slice of the Darien jungle, a biosphere reserve (Prensa Latina).
Other news
The leaders of island nations in the Pacific are asking the United States to come back to the Paris climate accord (Reuters).
Scientists say that recent bottlenose dolphin deaths linked to a red tide in Florida constitute an “unusual mortality event” (NOAA).
Glacier melt triggered a massive tsunami three years ago in Alaska (The Washington Post).
Researchers trace a rash of shark bites near New York City to sand tiger sharks, using DNA from a shark tooth (Science Magazine).
A new White House official once said that more carbon dioxide is good for the Earth (Science Magazine).
Limited funds for conservation mean that decision-makers have to make choices about which species they save (Science Magazine).
A game could touch off action on climate change (PLOS ONE/EurekAlert).
A new book tracks the “extreme” side of conservation (The Atlantic).
Researchers have found a new species of weevil in Romania (Xinhua).
Over 50 minke whales in a marine protected area near the Antarctic have been killed by Japan, WWF says (The Guardian).
The clothing maker Burberry says it will stop using real fur in its products (The Guardian).
Satellites help authorities track illegal fishers (The Economist).
Perennial food crops could be a boon for the environment (Ensia).
Scientists map the genome of the golden eagle (BBC News).
Researchers follow tweets by the public to study insects, spiders and birds (BBC News).
Banner image of a golden eagle by Rocky (CC BY 2.0), via Wikimedia Commons.
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