REDD-Monitor’s round-up of the week’s news on forests, the climate crisis, REDD, and natural climate solutions. For regular updates, follow @reddmonitor on Twitter.
13 April 2020
Deforestation Spikes in the Amazon Amid Coronavirus Crisis
By Yessenia Funes, Gizmodo, 13 April 2020
Activity in most of the world has come to a halt due to the spread of the coronavirus, but illegal logging and land grabbing in the Amazon rainforest shows no sign of slowing down. New data reveals that deforestation is the worst it’s been in the region in over a decade.
Conservation news site Mongabay used data from Brazil’s National Space Research Institute to measure how bad deforestation has gotten in the world’s largest rainforest. More than 3,533 square miles have been lost in the last 12 months. That’s an area larger than Yellowstone National Park. The last time the situation was this bad in the Amazon was May 2008, when a record 3,548 square miles were lost in a 12-month period.
A Basic Income Manifesto
By Daniel Raventós and Julie Wark, CounterPunch, 13 April 2020
n the COVID-19 crisis, which is hitting hard at the vast majority of people, it’s hardly surprising that, in these first weeks of the emergency, the proposal for a universal basic income—an unconditional, monthly, monetary payment by the government to the whole population—has been widely discussed as a possible mitigating measure. People who acknowledge the fact that they have always dismissed the idea of a basic income are now saying it’s “absolutely necessary”. What was inconceivable a couple of months ago has become real.
Looking beyond pangolins and Chinese “wet markets” to a culture of racial bias
By Jeff Conant, Friends of the Earth, 13 April 2020
In a recent article, I described how emerging infectious diseases are linked to biodiversity loss and tropical forest destruction, noting that the most likely origin of the novel coronavirus is in the illegal trade in pangolins and other animals in the markets of Wuhan, China.
Ukraine: wildfires draw dangerously close to Chernobyl site
By Andrew Roth, The Guardian, 13 April 2020
Wildfires in Ukraine have spread to just over a mile from the defunct Chernobyl nuclear power plant and a disposal site for radioactive waste, according to activists, as more than 300 firefighters work to contain the blaze.
A video posted by a Chernobyl tour operator showed flames and a cloud of smoke rising within sight of the protective shelter over the carcass of Chernobyl’s Unit 4 nuclear reactor, the site of the worst nuclear disaster in history.
14 April 2020
Strengthen worldwide climate commitments to improve economy, study finds
By Fiona Harvey, The Guardian, 14 April 2020
Every country in the world would be economically better off if all could agree to strengthen their commitments on the climate crisis through international cooperation, new research has found.
But if countries go no further than their current CO2 pledges – which are too weak to meet the goals of the Paris agreement, and would lead to dangerous levels of global heating – then they face steep economic losses.
Nature’s comeback? No, the coronavirus pandemic threatens the world’s wildlife
By Charlie Gardner, The Conversation, 14 April 2020
There have not been many bright spots in the coronavirus pandemic, but one has been the apparent return of nature as the frantic pace of modern life has slowed. We’ve seen fish-eating birds return to the clear waters of Venice, wild boar roaming the streets of Bergamo, and of course the feral mountain goats of Llandudno.
Coronavirus outbreak could cost world’s airlines up to $314bn
By Gwyn Topham, The Guardian, 14 April 2020
Global airline revenues are now forecast to drop by more than half – $314bn (£249bn) – in 2020, as the industry warned that its “outlook grows darker by the day”.
The International Air Transport Association’s (Iata) latest estimate adds a further $62bn of lost revenue from its previous assessment in late March and is almost three times worse than its “worst-case scenario” from five weeks ago, with around 95% of international passenger traffic now lost due to travel restrictions.
For Brazilian agribusiness, leaving the Amazon forested is ‘a problem’
By Fernanda Wenzel, Mongabay, 14 April 2020
The Brazilian state of Acre lost 688 square kilometers (265 square miles) of forest in 2019, up 55% from the previous year and the third-biggest expanse of deforestation among the country’s Amazonian states. But Assuero Doca Veronez, president of the Acre Agriculture Federation, is not troubled by this statistic. “For us, deforestation is a synonym for progress, as much as this might shock people,” he says. “Acre doesn’t have minerals. It has no potential for tourism. What it does have is some of the best land in Brazil. But this land has one problem: it’s covered in forest.”
How the coronavirus outbreak affects the EU’s 2030 climate targets
By Robert Jeszke, EURACTIV, 14 April 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic currently hitting Europe has significantly slowed discussions on the EU Green Deal. The crisis hit soon after the EU’s Climate Law proposal was presented, with plans to increase the bloc’s 2030 emissions reduction target from the existing 40% to 50–55%, compared to 1990 levels.
On the EU carbon market, the current price of EU Allowances (EUA) reflects increasingly negative investor sentiment caused by the pandemic, which have wider repercussions on global financial markets.
Indonesia won’t ‘sacrifice economy’ for more ambitious emissions cuts
By Hans Nicholas Jong, Mongabay, 14 April 2020
Indonesia will not set a more ambitious emissions reduction target to counter increasingly dire climate change projections, saying it wants to focus instead on its economic growth.
The Southeast Asian country is one of the world’s biggest greenhouse gas emitters and also a signatory to the 2015 Paris climate agreement. Under that framework, it has committed to reducing emissions by 29% from the business-as-usual scenario by 2030, or 41% with international assistance.
[New Zealand] Climate Commission warns high-emissions coronavirus spend-up will spark new crisis
By Eloise Gibson, Stuff, 14 April 2020
The Climate Change Commission – the expert panel tasked with getting New Zealand carbon neutral – has written to the government asking it to apply a “climate change lens” to the post-Covid-19 spend-up.
In a letter to Climate Change Minister James Shaw, the commission warned that locking New Zealand into a high-emissions future “will only compound today’s crisis with a future one”.
“An economic stimulus package can either speed up or stall our progress on climate change,” said the letter.
Forest Fires Blaze Through Thailand: Some Link Fires To Livestock Land Clearing
By Robbie Lockie, Plant Based News, 14 April 2020
The forest fires blazing through Thailand could be connected to land clearing for livestock, some campaigners say.
The fires, which reportedly started in late March, have badly affected the north of the country. Mashable SE Asia says the majority of the fires were believed to have started at the Doi Suthep-Pui National Park in Chiang Mai’s Muang district.
15 April 2020
Think This Pandemic Is Bad? We Have Another Crisis Coming
By Rhiana Gunn-Wright, The New York Times, 15 April 2020
On the last Friday in March, I lost hope.
I have always believed in America: not in our inherent goodness — I am too black for that — but in our sheer animal will to survive. Crisis after crisis, our country has evolved to meet the moment, even if that meant changing the way we thought the world worked or striving to upend the imbalance of power. But on that Friday, I was on my couch working when the messages started to pour in. Friends sent me video after video of Republican senators debating stimulus measures to address the coronavirus crisis, standing in the Senate chamber, saying that the Green New Deal — a proposal that I helped create — was the reason millions of Americans would not receive the help that they need.
‘Mixed with prejudice’: calls for ban on ‘wet’ markets misguided, experts argue
By Michael Standaert, The Guardian, 15 April 2020
Attacks and calls to ban “wet markets” because of their potential for spreading diseases such as Covid-19 may be missing the point, say experts.
Earlier this week Sir Paul McCartney, a long-time vegetarian campaigner, called wet markets “medieval” and said that it made sense to ban them. “When you’ve got the obscenity of some of the stuff that’s going on there and what comes out of it, they might as well be letting off atomic bombs. It’s affecting the whole world.”
Study projects 30% more forest cover if wood biomass is managed right; critics call it a disaster
By Lauren Crothers, Mongabay, 15 April 2020
The continued use of wood-derived biomass could result in a potential 30% increase in worldwide forest cover — more than a billion hectares (2.5 billion acres) — by the year 2100, according to a new research paper. The researchers say their calculations show that all that’s needed are the right incentives, higher values on products, and stricter forest management.
The outcome of the study is the idea that providing a competitive financial incentive is one factor in encouraging the reforestation of areas where wood has been cut for biomass. For instance, if wood can earn harvesters more money than a replacement crop, such as palm for oil, then they would be more inclined to replant trees or afforest other areas, thus leading to an increase, over time, of overall forest cover.
‘Planetary computer’: Microsoft ramps up sustainability vision with new land protection pledges
By Cecilia Keating, BusinessGreen, 15 April 2020
Microsoft has vowed to build a new ‘planetary computer’ and protect more land than it uses by 2025 as part of a suite of sustainability initiatives unveiled today that build on the tech giant’s high profile plan to be carbon negative within the next 10 years.
The new pledges, outlined by Microsoft president Brad Smith in a blog post published this afternoon, are geared towards protecting biodiversity and leveraging data, algorithms, and computing power to boost the health of global ecosystems.
Land conflicts escalate with spread of COVID-19 in Indonesia
By Hans Nicholas Jong, Mongabay, 15 April 2020
Two people have died in a series of land disputes between major companies and rural communities in Indonesia.
Activists have denounced the escalation in the conflicts, saying businesses shouldn’t be taking advantage of the country’s focus on dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic to further their own — often illegal — interests.
[Ukraine] Chernobyl forest fires are out: officials
Brisbane Times, 15 April 2020
Ukrainian emergency officials say forest fires in the radiation-contaminated area near the Chernobyl nuclear power plant have been extinguished, but acknowledged that grass was still smouldering in some areas.
Hundreds of firefighters backed by aircraft have been battling several forest fires around Chernobyl for the past 10 days. They contained the initial blazes, but new fires raged closer to the decommissioned plant.
Climate crisis: UK aid money funnelled into fossil fuel companies
By Harry Cockburn, Independent, 15 April 2020
British aid money is being used to fund fossil fuel projects in Africa and south east Asia, despite the UK government urging every country in the world to formalise plans to hit net zero greenhouse gas emissions.
An investigation by Greenpeace reveals the government’s development finance institution – CDC Group – which invests money in businesses in developing countries, has 16 active investments in oil and gas projects in Africa, and one in south east Asia.
16 April 2020
Low-cost satellite forest monitoring for all: Q&A with CLASlite creator Greg Asner
By Liz Kimbrough, Mongabay, 16 April 2020
Satellites are an excellent tool for monitoring forests. Those who work in the areas of forest management, policy development and environmental conservation are increasingly making use of these eyes in the sky to track logging, deforestation, and other forest disturbance events.
However, it takes specialized tools to turn the green blur of raw satellite images into useful information. Enter CLASlite, an automated system for converting satellite imagery from its raw format into detailed maps that can be searched for specific forest disturbance events. CLASlite aims to make deforestation and forest degradation monitoring accessible to everyone.
Shell unveils plans to become net-zero carbon company by 2050
By Jilliam Ambrose, The Guardian, 16 April 2020
Royal Dutch Shell plans to become a net zero-carbon company by 2050 or sooner by selling more green energy to help reduce the carbon intensity of its business.
Ben van Beurden, Shell’s chief executive, said the company must focus on the long-term “even at this time of immediate challenge” caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Is carbon sequestration on farms actually working to fight climate change?
By Gabriel Popkin, GreenBiz, 16 April 2020
Trey Hill led a small group of fellow farmers to a field outside his office in Rock Hall on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. It was a cloudy February day, but the ground was alive with color — purple and red turnip tops mixing exuberantly with green rye, vetch and clover, and beneath it all, rich brown soil. Hill reached down, yanked a long, thick, white daikon radish from the earth and showed his visitors sumptuous coffee-colored clods clinging to hairy rootlets. Those clumps, he explained, hoard carbon — carbon that’s not heating the planet.
To tackle the climate crisis, the world cannot return to normal after Covid-19
By Adrienne Buller, New Statesman, 16 April 2020
With startling clarity, the ongoing public health and economic crisis has revealed our collective priorities. Communities across the UK have exhibited solidarity and generosity, with more than 750,000 volunteering for the NHS and mutual aid groups. These actions have been mirrored across the world, from volunteer drives for medical workers in Wuhan to “care mongering” in Toronto. In many respects, this crisis has served as a reminder that we broadly want similar things: security, health, community, wellbeing. It would be easy to assume, as the maxim now goes, that we might just all be in this together. But where the public has demonstrated solidarity, the response from many governments reflects a different reality, and offers a harrowing warning of how we might handle our next great crisis, the most urgent of which is the climate emergency.
Inconvenient truths: the psychology of coronavirus and the climate crisis
By Jemma Deer, The Canary, 16 April 2020
The coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic has been widely recognized as the biggest challenge we have faced since the Second World War. It’s had the effect of transforming every aspect of ordinary human life and undermining the sense of security that those of us living in global North usually take for granted.
But unlike the threat of war, where the danger comes from an external and identifiable enemy, the danger now comes from our ordinary day-to-day lives. Suddenly, most of the things we usually spend our time doing – going to work, going to the gym, seeing friends and family – are off-limits and any human contact becomes a potential vector for spreading the virus. The asymptomatic transmitability of Covid-19 means that there are no social interactions that escape potential culpability.
Climate actions should not be postponed due to Covid-19, both crises are threats to us all
By Dorothy Grace Guerrero, Global Justice Now, 16 April 2020
The novel coronavirus or Covid-19 has shown us how interconnected we are and how fragile the global economic system is. Since its first identification in Wuhan, China in mid-December last year, the virus has spread rapidly to almost every county in the world and become a pandemic. It has now brought billions of people into lockdown, has infected close to 1.3 million people and caused close to 80,000 deaths and still rising by early April. The virus continues to spread and if not addressed soon it could infect two-thirds or 60% of the global population according to estimates.
$3 million and an official apology: Brazil’s Ashaninka get unprecedented compensation for deforestation on their land
By Naira Hofmeister, Mongabay, 16 April 2020
Far from the Brazil nut trees that shape the landscape of the Kampa do Rio Amônia Indigenous Reserve in the western tip of the state of Acre, the Ashaninka people realized their most important victory since the federal government first recognized their territory in 1992. On April 1, 2020, the Prosecutor General of the Republic, Augusto Aras, signed an unprecedented settlement that guaranteed reparations for crimes committed almost 40 years ago. The agreement gives this indigenous community the right to compensation of R$ 14 million (nearly US$ 3 million) with an official apology from the criminal offenders.
‘The trees are my grandparents’: the Ecuador tribe trying to save its culture
By Lianne Kolirin, The Guardian, 16 April 2020
The Amazon rainforest has been home to the Achuar people for thousands of years. Skilled hunters and fishermen, they have a spiritual connection with nature and consider themselves the forest’s greatest protectors.
Life is governed by their ancestors, with family history passed down orally from generation to generation. Yet traditions are being undermined as the young are tempted away by modernity, while their fragile ecosystem faces man-made destruction.
[South Africa] Big timber accused of unauthorised tree switch
By Tony Carnie, New Frame, 16 April 2020
Vast tracts of the Mpumalanga highveld are home to about 494 004 hectares of commercial tree plantations, most of them pine. It is an industry regulated by the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development and the Department of Water and Sanitation, among others. Forested areas, some of them catchment zones, are regulated, too. This includes specific areas and the species of tree with which they are forested.
Forest fires rage in northern Thailand
By Sonia Sambhi, Eco-Business, 16 April 2020
While the world’s attention has been focused on the Covid-19 pandemic, northern Thailand has been experiencing the worst forest fires in decades. Already raging since mid-March, the fires are projected to continue well into May.
With the news of the pandemic dominating international media, the choking fires have gone under the radar even despite the “critical levels” of air pollution in Chiang Mai.
[UK] Public want radical response to climate change with same urgency as coronavirus, poll finds
By Jon Stone, Independent, 16 April 2020
The government should be more radical and put in place serious policies to fight the climate crisis with the same urgency as it has to coronavirus, voters believe.
A new survey by pollsters Opinium found 48 per cent of the public agree that the government should respond “with the same urgency to climate change as it has with Covid-19”, with just 28 per cent saying it shouldn’t.
[UK] Bank of England ‘failing climate’ with Covid-19 stimulus programme
By Jasper Jolly, The Guardian, 16 April 2020
The Bank of England has been accused of failing to live up to its tough talk on the climate crisis after it revealed it would buy debt from oil companies as part of its coronavirus stimulus programme.
The oil firms BP, Royal Dutch Shell and Total are among the companies whose subsidiaries’ debts are eligible for the Bank’s bond purchases, according to an indicative list published on its website this week.
17 April 2020
The tangled web of companies buying and selling ‘credit’ to reduce carbon emissions
By Erik Sherman, Fortune, 17 April 2020
In a world of climate-change worries, where investors increasingly look at environmental sustainability, companies scramble to improve their carbon footprint—and their reputations.
Microsoft said it will be carbon negative by 2030. JetBlue wants to be carbon neutral on all domestic flights by July 2020. Starbucks looks to be “resource-positive” by 2030, including storing more carbon than it emits.
‘Coronavirus profiteers’ condemned as polluters gain bailout billions
By Damian Carrington, The Guardian, 17 April 2020
Polluting industries around the world are using the coronavirus pandemic to gain billions of dollars in bailouts and to weaken and delay environmental protections.
The moves by the fossil fuel, motor, aviation, farming, plastic and timber sectors are described as dangerous and irresponsible by senior figures. Environmental campaigners describe some participants in these industries as “coronavirus profiteers”.
COVID-19 pandemic: How nature steps in to refill ‘empty forests’ when animals disappear
By John E- Fa, Robert Nasi, and Julie Mollins, CIFOR Forests News, 17 April 2020
“We must not let a forest full of trees fool us into believing that all is well.”
Kent Redford’s cautionary statement turned prevailing views on forest conservation inside out when it was published in an essay titled ”The Empty Forest,” in BioScience journal almost 30 years ago.
“Many of these forests are ‘living dead,’ and, although satellites passing overhead may reassuringly register them as forest, they are empty of much of the faunal richness valued by humans,” Redford wrote, referring to apparently healthy standing forests.
Earth Day 2020: COVID and the climate crisis
Amnesty International USA, 17 April 2020
The impacts of the coronavirus and this global pandemic have exacerbated a startling host of human rights issues and violations, and climate change is not immune.
We applaud the brave organizers and activists who call attention to how this global pandemic aggravates overarching societal ills. And, as this public health crisis unfolds, we seek to highlight the ways climate change and justice are impacted.
International Day of Peasant Struggle // Industrial meat production: reshaping the world in its own image
Global Forest Coalition, 17 April 2020
On International Day of Peasant Struggle, we are delighted to launch a new report that focuses on a key threat to the livelihoods and food sovereignty of peasant communities worldwide: the industrial livestock industry. Our new briefing looks at the global impacts of this destructive industry and southern perspectives on alternative, more sustainable models of food production. The briefing summarises the lively discussions and outcomes of three dialogues on unsustainable livestock farming and its alternatives that took place in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), Santiago de Chile (Chile) and Bogor (Indonesia) over the past six months.
[Brazil] Victory: evangelical missionaries barred from uncontacted tribes’ land
Survival International, 17 April 2020
In a landmark ruling, a Brazilian judge has blocked evangelical missionaries from making contact with uncontacted tribes in the Javari Valley, home to the greatest concentration of such peoples anywhere on Earth.
The lawsuit was brought by UNIVAJA, the indigenous organization of the Javari Valley, to counter concerted efforts by the missionaries to reach uncontacted communities.
[Brazil] The Chain: SLC Agricola Moves Forward with Clearing 5,200 Hectares of Native Vegetation
Chain Reaction Research, 17 April 2020
SLC Agricola, the largest listed soybean producer in Brazil, cleared a total of 5,200 hectares (ha) of native vegetation in the first quarter of 2020. The deforestation took place on its Fazenda Parceiro farm at the same time the global economy began struggling with disruptions from the COVID-19 crisis. The farm is located in the municipality of Formosa do Rio Preto at the border of Brazilian states Bahia and Piaui, in the area known as Matopiba. The clearing of Cerrado native vegetation appears to be in line with Brazil’s Forest Code, but in violation of the zero-deforestation commitments of its customers and a large portion of downstream soy-consuming industries.
[Ukraine] Kyiv residents told to stay indoors as smoke from Chernobyl fires blankets the city
By Nataliya Vasilyeva, The Telegraph, 17 April 2020
Kyiv residents were told to shut their windows and stay indoors yesterday after thick smoke from wildfires in the Chernobyl exclusion zone blanketed the Ukrainian capital.
The authorities insisted, however, that the blanket of thick yellowish smoke, which came in from forest fires smouldering in the area around the now defunct Chernobyl nuclear power station, was not a health hazard.
Virgin Atlantic told to resubmit bailout bid by ‘unimpressed’ UK Treasury
By Tanya Powley, Daniel Thomas and Sebastian Payne, Financial Times, 17 April 2020
Virgin Atlantic has been told to resubmit its proposal for a £500m coronavirus bailout package after the UK government was left unimpressed with its initial bid, the FT can reveal.
The carrier is the first UK airline to seek a bespoke support package from the government as it battles one of the worst crises in the history of aviation with many countries having restricted air travel to contain the disease.
‘Huge environmental waste’ as US airlines fly near-empty planes
By Oliver Milman, The Guardian, 17 April 2020
The coronavirus outbreak has provoked a string of unsettling sights, such as the sudden widespread use of masks, shuttered businesses and deserted streets. Another unusual phenomenon is also playing out in the skies – near-empty airplanes flying through the air.
Widespread travel restrictions around the world have slashed demand for air travel, with more than eight in 10 flights canceled. But there is a disparity in the US – while the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has reported a 96% slump in passenger volume, to a level not seen since 1954, this hasn’t been matched by the number of flights being scrapped.
18 April 2020
[Canada] Oil lobby group asks for environmental laws to be suspended due to coronavirus
By Louise Boyle, Independent, 18 April 2020
A leaked letter from Canada’s largest oil and gas lobby to the country’s government has revealed more than 30 requests to suspend environmental regulations, laws and policies due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers (CAPP) made the requests over 13 pages to members of prime minister Justin Trudeau’s cabinet, in a letter reported by Global News.
The Netherlands Keeps Going Upstream When It Comes To Aviation Tax
By Emanuela Barbiroglio, Forbes, 18 April 2020
A European aviation tax seems a remote possibility, after last week’s bruising discussions over recovery plans. Only The Netherlands renewed its plans for the new €7 tax in March, despite requests from the aviation industry to take a pause because of the current COVID-19.
The tax will apply to all flights towards all destinations and it will be effective from the beginning of next year.
19 April 2020
Enduring the Climate and Coronavirus Crises: What Will It Take to Get Through Both?
By Ashley Braun, Desmog Blog, 19 April 2020
While time feels distorted these days, it was only seven months and a lifetime ago that millions around the globe, led by school children, were marching in the streets, passionately demanding action and investment to match the scale of the climate crisis. Today, we’d instinctively recoil imagining those crowds, fearful of the potential to spread more than the idea that humans deserve a livable climate. But in both cases, pulling away from each other, at least in spirit, may be our collective undoing.
Lessons From COVID-19 to Address the Climate Crisis
By Amy Merrill, Common Dreams, 19 April 2020
Last month the Trump administration chose this moment to weaken national auto emissions standards. While swimming hard against a crisis the administration initially scoffed at, they are clearing the way to be ill-prepared for the next. We are so much smarter than that. Here are a few obvious takeaways.
Earth’s Atmosphere Is 4x Dustier Than We Thought, Which Could Change Climate Models
By Carly Cassella, Science Alert, 19 April 2020
Climate models are an invaluable tool for predicting the trajectory of the climate crisis, but we need them to be as accurate as possible if we’re going to model everything from its pace, to its consequences, to its tipping points.
Now, it seems we need to adjust some numbers on the true dustiness of Earth’s atmosphere – a property that plays a vital role in climate systems.
As Bolsonaro Keeps Amazon Vows, Brazil’s Indigenous Fear ‘Ethnocide’
By Ernesto Londoño and Letícia Casado, The New York Times, 19 April 2020
The billboard at the entrance of a tiny Indigenous village in the Amazon has become a relic in less than a decade, boasting of something no longer true.
“Here, there is investment by the federal government,” proclaims the sign, erected in 2012, which is now shrouded by fallen palm tree fronds.
1,000 people battling forest fire in China’s Yunnan
The Star, 19 April 2020
Some 1,000 people were mobilised to put out the fire that raged a forest in southwest China’s Yunnan Province, fire police said Sunday (April 19).
The fire was spotted at 1.30pm on Saturday in the forest range of Xingwen Village, Yulong County, under the city of Lijiang, according to the forest fire police of the city.
[India] Forest fires during lockdown keep officials on their toes in Goa
By Gauree Malkarnekar, The Times of India, 19 April 2020
For three days in a row, fire appeared to recur in patches of a cashew plantation in Shirvoi in Quepem, leading to the forest department to pursue a complaint against unknown suspects. Unable to bring the fire under control, even personnel from the forest department’s North Goa division had to be roped in. During the lockdown, instances of such fires in forested patches appear to have increased.
Can we defend NZ’s staggering natural carbon reserves?
By Eloise Gibson, Stuff, 19 April 2020
New Zealand’s native trees contain staggering amounts of carbon – so much that the country’s old-growth forests were recently listed among the world’s most irreplaceable carbon sinks. But very little of this forest is able to earn carbon credits, meaning some private landowners stand to make more money by logging. Is there a more climate-friendly solution?