Governments and investors are seeking minerals, timber and oil in the Congo Basin to fuel the global economy and the green transition. However, communities that have lived in the world’s second-largest rainforest for generations are paying the highest price for extraction, according to a new report published ahead of the upcoming United Nations Climate Change Conference in Belém, Brazil. COP30 is expected to address, among other issues, the management and financing of tropical rainforests, which are vital for climate stability.

The new report, released by the Global Alliance of Territorial Communities (GATC) and Earth Insight, details how extractive industries are converging on Indigenous and local community lands across the world’s major tropical forests. In the Congo Basin, the planet’s largest forest carbon sink, 38% of community forests are threatened by oil and gas blocks, 42% by mining and 6% with logging, according to the report.

These overlapping pressures are degrading fragile ecosystems and threatening Indigenous livelihoods. In the TRIDOM landscape spanning Cameroon, Gabon and the Republic of Congo, more than half of community forests overlap with logging concessions, the report notes. Across western Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), oil licenses threaten to encroach on 99% of community forests, including the Cuvette Centrale peatlands, home to 30 billion tons of stored carbon, vital to global climate stability.

Industrial exploitation tells only part of the story; livelihoods are also impacted. “Our peoples have protected these forests for generations … yet our rights remain fragile,” Joseph Itongwa of the Network of Indigenous and Local Populations for the Sustainable Management of Forest Ecosystems in Central Africa, a member organization with the GATC, states in the report. “If the world is truly committed to climate justice, it must support and finance the protection of the Congo Region through the leadership of its original custodians. We are not the beneficiaries—we are the architects of a different future.”

The report also highlights the growing economic complexity surrounding resource extraction. Governments often see mining and hydrocarbons as engines of growth and fiscal stability, while companies promise jobs and development. But corruption and weak governance often prevent communities from seeing significant benefits. A 2020 Mongabay report established that poor governance and corruption are considered the biggest obstacles to protecting DRC forests.

The report also offers signs of progress. The DRC’s 2022 Pygmy Law was designed for the “Promotion and Protection of the Rights of the Indigenous Pygmy Peoples,” recognizing their civic and land rights. In Cameroon, the NGO Ajemalibu Self Help works with local councils and communities to map forest lands, blending traditional knowledge with modern conservation tools — bridging the gap between authorities and forest communities.

To build on such progress, the GATC urges climate finance to flow directly to communities, circumventing multilateral development banks. It also calls for the enforcement of free, prior and informed consent in all projects to support local biodiversity and social peace.

Banner image: of a mandrill in Gabon by Rhett Ayers Butler.

BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Interpol and partners launched a global law enforcement effort Wednesday aimed at dismantling criminal networks behind illegal logging, timber trafficking and gold mining, which drive large-scale deforestation and generate billions in illicit profits each year.

The effort announced ahead of the U.N. COP30 climate summit in Brazil will focus mainly on tropical forests in Brazil, Ecuador, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Peru.

“Criminals are making billions by looting the planet’s forests,” Interpol Secretary General Valdecy Urquiza said in a statement. “The only way to stop them is through determined law enforcement action and strong international cooperation.”

This latest phase of the Law Enforcement Assistance Program to Reduce Tropical Deforestation was announced in Rio de Janeiro during the United for Wildlife Global Summit. It is led by Interpol, the international police organization that helps national authorities coordinate and share intelligence, together with the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime. It is funded by Norway’s International Climate and Forest Initiative.

The announcement follows a major crackdown in the Amazon Basin last week, when Brazilian police, supported by Interpol, destroyed more than 270 illegal mining dredges operating on the Madeira River. Authorities said the raids dealt a significant blow to criminal groups linked to gold-smuggling networks that span Brazil, Bolivia and Peru.

UNODC Executive Director Ghada Waly said illegal deforestation “weakens the rule of law and finances organized crime,” adding that the joint initiative seeks to ensure offenders are held accountable while supporting justice systems and local communities.

Launched in 2018, LEAP has evolved from mapping timber-trafficking routes to coordinating cross-border investigations and seizing millions of dollars in illicit wood and minerals. Interpol-led operations in Latin America have uncovered hundreds of environmental crimes, including the destruction of hundreds of illegal gold-mining dredges in the Brazilian Amazon and dozens of arrests across nine countries for logging and wildlife trafficking.

Its new phase expands that work to target illegal mining in the Amazon Basin, now a leading cause of deforestation and mercury pollution, and to enhance intelligence-sharing among enforcement agencies.

By: Steven Grattan, Associated Press

Banner image: Deforestation is visible near the areas of several wood pellet production companies in Pohuwato, Gorontalo province, Indonesia, Oct. 22, 2024. (AP Photo/Yegar Sahaduta Mangiri, File)

A conservation alliance in the U.K. has raised nearly one-third of the 30 million pounds ($39 million) it needs to buy land in northeastern England to turn into a refuge for wildlife and local communities.

The land, known as the Rothbury Estate, is roughly the size of the Greek capital of Athens, at 3,839 hectares (9,486 acres), and is located next to a national park.

Wildlife Trusts, a network of U.K. conservation charities, says the land’s management would help protect local species such as red squirrels (Sciurus vulgaris), pine martens (Martes martes), curlews (Numenius arquata) and skylarks (Alauda arvensis). The group says it will reintroduce European bison (Bison bonasus) and beavers (Castor fiber).

The area could also serve has a habitat for golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos), recently spotted in northern England for the first time in several decades.

“The Wildlife Trusts have launched an appeal to buy this very special place,” renowned naturalist and broadcaster David Attenborough said in a video shared by the charity. “They will work with local farmers to care for the area and breathe new life into it with the communities who live and work at Rothbury.”

Rothbury Estate was put up for sale in 2023 by a 35-year-old English aristocrat, Max Percy, who grew up in the castle used as Hogwarts for the Harry Potter movies.

In October 2024, Wildlife Trusts, in partnership with Northumberland Wildlife Trust, purchased the first part of the estate, known as Simonside Hills, made up of open expanses of moorland and forest, and home to Neolithic and Bronze Age rock carvings.

Percy agreed to give the charity a two-year window to raise the funds to purchase the remaining areas, largely agricultural land. Local media reported that some residents have argued the land should be returned to the community and its fate shouldn’t be decided by one person.

“There were several interested parties in the Rothbury Estate, and Max selected the purchaser he believed would be most suitable for the long-term interests of the Estate,” Northumberland Estates, which manages the family’s assets, told Mongabay by email.

The Estate was marketed at £35 million [$46 million], but the agreed sale price remains confidential.

A Wildlife Trusts spokesperson told Mongabay by email that they’re now one year away from their deadline and have raised nearly 10 million pounds ($13 million) of their 30-million-pound goal. “Along with local support, we’ve received donations from £5 [$6.5] to £5m from people all over the country and abroad.”

If they don’t reach their goal amount, Wildlife Trusts warns the land may be broken up into smaller parts and sold off to different buyers, threatening to disrupt one of the nation’s few remaining natural strongholds and raising concerns for the region’s farmers and residents.

Banner image: People walking through Rothbury Estate. Image courtesy of John Millard.

A chemical spill from an ethanol distillery has put one of the Philippines’ largest marine protected areas at risk.

A wall retaining the wastewater pond of an ethanol distillery plant collapsed on Oct. 24, causing about 255,000 cubic meters (67 million gallons) of wastewater to flow into Bais Bay in the central Philippines, according to the Bais City government. The plant is owned by Philippine food and beverage conglomerate Universal Robina Corporation (URC).

Bais Bay is part of the Tañon Strait Protected Seascape (TSPS), a narrow body of water between the islands of Negros and Cebu. The strait is home to about 14 species of whales and dolphins, including the Indo-Pacific bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops aduncus) and short-finned pilot whale (Globicephala macrorhynchus). The strait also supports diverse habitats, including mangrove forests and coral reefs, and is an important fishing ground and tourist attraction.

“[T]he beauty, bounty, and ecological integrity of Tañon Strait is under active threat of being adversely impacted by this negligent act,” marine conservation nonprofit Oceana said in a statement. “The spill can affect the nutrient cycling and food web stability of the protected area, and cause long-lasting damage to its benthic habitats, coral reefs, and seagrass beds, impacting fish and invertebrate populations.”

According to authorities, preliminary assessments suggest there was “visible discoloration across North Bais Bay, posing significant risks to marine biodiversity, fisheries, and local livelihoods,” the Manilla Bulletin reported.

Following the spill, Bais City’s mayor issued an order on Oct. 28 suspending all tourism activities, including dolphin watching and swimming. The same day, the fisheries bureau issued a local advisory warning the public against harvesting and consuming fish, crustaceans or seaweed.

Maria Dorica Naz-Hipe, assistant director of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources’ Environmental Management Bureau (DENR-EMB), said on Nov. 3 that at least 3,000 fisherfolk and 17 coastal villages were affected. She added that URC will need to compensate those affected and pay penalties for the damage to the protected seascape.

Oceana said the government must “hold URC fully accountable for this ethanol wastewater spill,” and not let the company get away with a mere “slap on the wrist” like it had for similar incidents in the past.

“Oceana demands that Universal Robina Corporation (URC) and the concerned government agencies act with urgency and ensure transparency to clean up this mess, initiate preventive measures to stop the continuing spread of ethanol pollution to neighboring areas, compensate the victims justly and fully for loss of income and livelihood, and ensure that such a disaster not happen again,” Von Hernandez, Oceana’s vice president in the Philippines, told Mongabay in a statement.

According to The Manila Times, URC said in a statement that the wall’s collapse was “due to earthquake-induced cracks, exacerbated by unexpected continuous heavy rains.” The company added it’s working with authorities to ensure “proper cleanup and full compliance with environmental standards.”

Banner image: Satellite images of the chemical spill in Bais Bay. Images courtesy of Sentinel-2L2A.

Brazil’s Federal Police have indicted 31 suspects for fraud and land-grabbing in a massive criminal carbon credit scheme in the Brazilian Amazon, according to Brazilian national media outlet Folha de S.Paulo. It is the largest known criminal operation involving carbon credit fraud to date in the nation.

The police probe, called Operation Greenwashing, was launched following an investigation by Mongabay reporter Fernanda Wenzel published in May 2024 about two REDD+ carbon credit projects that appeared to be linked to illegal timber laundering.

The Netherlands-based Center for Climate Crime Analysis (CCCA) analyzed the REDD+ projects, called Unitor and Fortaleza Ituxi, at Mongabay’s request, finding a mismatch between their declared volume of logged timber and the logged volume estimated through satellite images, suggesting possible timber laundering.

The police investigation confirmed that two REDD+ project areas were generating carbon credits at the same time they were being used to launder timber taken from other illegally deforested areas.

Both projects, which cover more than 140,000 hectares (around 350,000 acres), are located in the municipality of Lábrea in the south of Amazonas state. The area has been identified as one of the newest and most aggressive deforestation frontiers in the Brazilian Amazon.

The Federal Police told Folha that three interconnected groups were involved.

One group was led by Ricardo Stoppe Júnior, known as Brazil’s largest individual seller of carbon credits. He has actively participated in climate talks and public events promoting his business model, including during the COP28 climate summit hosted in the United Arab Emirates.

Stoppe has sold millions of dollars in carbon credits to corporations including Nestlé, Toshiba, Spotify, Boeing and PwC.

The other two were led by Élcio Aparecido Moço and José Luiz Capelasso.

Moço shares a business conglomerate consisting of seven companies with Stoppe’s son, Ricardo Villares Lot Stoppe. In 2017, Moço had been sentenced for timber laundering, but in 2019, another court overruled his sentencing. In 2019, he was also indicted for allegedly bribing two public officials.

Capelasso was sentenced for illegally trading certificates of origin for forest products in 2012 but was subsequently released. At the time, the police alleged that Capelasso was charging 3,000 reais (approximately $1,500 in 2012) for each fake document. 

According to Operation Greenwashing, the scheme was made possible by corrupt public servants working in Brazil’s land reform agency, Incra, in registrar offices across Amazonas state, as well as the Amazonas state environmental protection institute, Ipaam.

Folha de S.Paulo did not get a response from any of the legal defence teams of the accused. Both Ipaam and Incra stated they supported and are collaborating with the police investigation.

Banner image: Logging in the Brazilian Amazon. Image © Bruno Kelly/Greenpeace.

The Ganga River, which sustains the lives of at least 600 million people, is facing its worst dry spell and lowest streamflow in 1,300 years, according to a recent study, reports Mongabay India’s Simrin Sirur.

Researchers extrapolated the Ganga’s water levels going back to the year 700 C.E. using a combination of paleoclimatic and historical data and hydrological modeling. They found that between 1991 and 2020, the river basin experienced a higher frequency of dry years compared to all other studied 30-year periods in the past.

The reconstruction of river levels highlighted other known periods of drought in India, including during the Bengal famine from 1769-1771, and major famines from the 14^th century that caused widespread crop failures and human deaths.

However, in 1991, the river’s streamflow suddenly declined by 620 cubic meters per second (about 21,900 cubic feet per second) — a new low compared to previous years. Between 1991 and 2020, the river experienced four droughts lasting at least three years. Historically, such long-term droughts were spaced 70 to 200 years apart, the authors noted.

This unusual drying is driven partly by decreasing monsoon precipitation over the river basin. While past droughts due to reduced monsoon rains could be explained by natural climate variations in sea surface temperatures in the Indo-Pacific Oceans, climate change likely plays a role today, the researchers added.

One hypothesis for the current decline “is that the land-ocean contrast has weakened because of global warming, which has in turn weakened the monsoon and reduced precipitation over the GRB [Ganga River Basin],” said Vimal Mishra, study co-author and a professor at the Indian Institute of Technology, Gandhinagar.

“[W]hat we’ve shown is that the declines today are unlike declines due to natural climate variability as seen in the past, and that we cannot expect this kind of aberration to resolve on its own over time,” Mishra added.

Increased aerosols — fine solid or liquid particulates in the air that reflect solar radiation — have also had a cooling effect over the river basin, leading to a decline in precipitation, he said.

“Extraction of groundwater is yet another possible reason for the declines in streamflow,” Mishra said. Recent studies have found that underground aquifers, not glaciers as previously thought, are the primarily source of water for the Ganga’s summer flow. The overextraction of groundwater for agriculture and other development needs is a major threat to groundwater recharge. Other studies suggest that without irrigation-related groundwater extraction, the Ganga’s flow would likely be rising each year.

The Ganga Basin extends through India, Nepal, Bangladesh and China, sustaining a population of at least 600 million.

Madhavan Rajeevan, a meteorologist and vice chancellor of Atria University, Bengaluru, who wasn’t involved in the study, said that given the Ganga’s socioeconomic importance, “we should be worried about such drastic changes to the river.”

Read the full story by Simrin Sirur here.

Banner image: Ganga River at Varanasi ghat by Babasteve via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0).