Green Options » deforestation http://greenoptions.com/tag/deforestation Posts tagged 'deforestation' Wed, 28 Oct 2009 15:07:24 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.5.1 en Is Global Scale Biofuels Production Good or Bad for Climate Change? http://cleantechnica.com/2009/10/28/is-global-scale-biofuels-production-good-or-bad-for-climate-change/ http://cleantechnica.com/2009/10/28/is-global-scale-biofuels-production-good-or-bad-for-climate-change/#comments Wed, 28 Oct 2009 15:07:24 +0000 Zachary Shahan http://cleantechnica.com/2009/10/28/is-global-scale-biofuels-production-good-or-bad-for-climate-change/
There has been a lot of discussion over the last few years about biofuels and whether or not they are actually green, especially when produced on a large, global level.

A new study led by Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) senior scientist Jerry Melillo says no, they aren’t green (when it comes to climate change). However, there are still many important factors to keep in mind before claiming this is the end of a long and complicated discussion.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2009/10/28/is-global-scale-biofuels-production-good-or-bad-for-climate-change/feed/ New Japanese Prime Minister Offering Indonesia $400 Million in Climate Change Funding http://cleantechnica.com/2009/10/27/new-japanese-prime-minister-offering-indonesia-400-million-in-climate-change-funding/ http://cleantechnica.com/2009/10/27/new-japanese-prime-minister-offering-indonesia-400-million-in-climate-change-funding/#comments Tue, 27 Oct 2009 15:50:15 +0000 Zachary Shahan http://cleantechnica.com/2009/10/27/new-japanese-prime-minister-offering-indonesia-400-million-in-climate-change-funding/
In an effort to help a major developing country (the 4th largest country in the world) deal with climate change appropriately, the new Prime Minister of Japan reportedly agreed to give Indonesia a $400 million loan for this last weekend.

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]]> http://cleantechnica.com/2009/10/27/new-japanese-prime-minister-offering-indonesia-400-million-in-climate-change-funding/feed/ Google to Fight Deforestation from Space http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/10/22/google-to-fight-deforestation-from-space/ http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/10/22/google-to-fight-deforestation-from-space/#comments Thu, 22 Oct 2009 00:10:35 +0000 Daniel Hohler http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/10/22/google-to-fight-deforestation-from-space/ Google

Google Inc. is joining forces with space agencies around the world and the conservation organization Group on Earth Observations (GEO) to monitor deforestation rates using satellite imagery. Among the space agencies working on the program are NASA, the ESA, and the national space agencies of Japan, Germany, Italy, India, and Brazil.

The GEO is a global partnership of 80 governments and more than 50 organizations. Internet company Google currently collects satellite images for use in its Google Earth application, and will be providing satellite images to the project.

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]]> http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/10/22/google-to-fight-deforestation-from-space/feed/ Amazon Says Goodbye to World’s Largest Meat Exporter http://ecoworldly.com/2009/10/01/amazon-says-goodbye-to-worlds-largest-meat-exporter/ http://ecoworldly.com/2009/10/01/amazon-says-goodbye-to-worlds-largest-meat-exporter/#comments Thu, 01 Oct 2009 12:33:29 +0000 Zachary Shahan http://ecoworldly.com/2009/10/01/amazon-says-goodbye-to-worlds-largest-meat-exporter/

Last month, I wrote about the world’s largest leather exporter leaving the Amazon. This week there is even bigger news. The world’s largest meat exporter is leaving.

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]]> http://ecoworldly.com/2009/10/01/amazon-says-goodbye-to-worlds-largest-meat-exporter/feed/ Don’t Like Biofuels? Bet You Can’t Beat Retaliation by Blowpipe! http://gas2.org/2009/09/01/dont-like-biofuels-bet-you-cant-beat-retaliation-by-blowpipe/ http://gas2.org/2009/09/01/dont-like-biofuels-bet-you-cant-beat-retaliation-by-blowpipe/#comments Tue, 01 Sep 2009 20:32:20 +0000 Nick Chambers http://gas2.org/2009/09/01/dont-like-biofuels-bet-you-cant-beat-retaliation-by-blowpipe/ Native Malaysian tribespeople are taking to traditional methods of battle — including the use of blowpipes — to combat the destruction of their homeland to satisfy the exploding worldwide demand for palm oil.

The rate at which virgin tropical rainforests are currently being cleared to plant palm plantations to supply the ravenous growth of worldwide palm oil demand is staggering: In Indonesia alone 4.4 million acres of rainforest disappear each year. Given that one American football field is roughly one acre, that’s just about 4.4 million football fields. Truly staggering.

Together, Malaysia and Indonesia account for 80% of worldwide palm oil production, but they also contain more than 80% of the remaining virgin rainforests in Southeast Asia. Unfortunately, the only remaining lands in Southeast Asia that are also the best for palm oil production are these vast swaths of virgin rainforest.

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]]> http://gas2.org/2009/09/01/dont-like-biofuels-bet-you-cant-beat-retaliation-by-blowpipe/feed/ World’s Largest Leather Exporter Backs Out of Amazon http://ecoworldly.com/2009/08/17/worlds-largest-leather-exporter-backs-out-of-amazon/ http://ecoworldly.com/2009/08/17/worlds-largest-leather-exporter-backs-out-of-amazon/#comments Mon, 17 Aug 2009 22:57:11 +0000 Zachary Shahan http://ecoworldly.com/2009/08/17/worlds-largest-leather-exporter-backs-out-of-amazon/
Just a couple of weeks ago, soya traders agreed to extend a moratorium on buying soya linked to Amazon destruction. However, as discussed in January, 80% of Amazon deforestation is from cattle farming. With continued involvement of major international organizations and companies — Greenpeace, McDonald’s, Nike, Wal-Mart, and Carrefour — a giant leap in protection of the Amazon was made a few days ago.

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]]> http://ecoworldly.com/2009/08/17/worlds-largest-leather-exporter-backs-out-of-amazon/feed/ Mixed Signals on Sustainable Development in Brazil? http://ecoworldly.com/2009/08/07/mixed-signals-sustainable-development-in-brazil/ http://ecoworldly.com/2009/08/07/mixed-signals-sustainable-development-in-brazil/#comments Fri, 07 Aug 2009 22:00:33 +0000 David Hone http://ecoworldly.com/2009/08/07/mixed-signals-sustainable-development-in-brazil/ Editor’s Note: This is a guest post from David Hone, Climate Change Adviser for Shell.

I have been in Sao Paulo this week at Sustentavel 2009, perhaps the premiere Sustainable Development event in Brazil, if not all of South America. At the opening I represented the World Business Council for Sustainable Development and then on the first day of presentations I participated in the main climate change panel session.

What is clear is that there is a passion in Brazil for sustainability – from the huge issues they face in the Amazon region to the road congestion in Sao Paulo. Talking with delegates at Sustentavel, it is also clear that the country faces an interesting future in terms of greenhouse gas emissions.

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]]> http://ecoworldly.com/2009/08/07/mixed-signals-sustainable-development-in-brazil/feed/ Greenpeace Ends Kleercut Campaign Against Kimberly-Clark http://sustainablog.org/2009/08/06/greenpeace-ends-kleercut-campaign-against-kimberly-clark/ http://sustainablog.org/2009/08/06/greenpeace-ends-kleercut-campaign-against-kimberly-clark/#comments Thu, 06 Aug 2009 22:18:50 +0000 Cindy Tickle http://sustainablog.org/2009/08/06/greenpeace-ends-kleercut-campaign-against-kimberly-clark/ Greenpeace launched the Kleercut Campaign against Kimberly-Clark accusing the company of cutting down ancient forests for their paper products.


It’s a good day for Kleenex.  After almost five years of hard campaigning, Greenpeace promised to end its Kleercut campaign against Kimberly-Clark, the world’s largest tissue-product manufacturer of Kleenex, Scott and Cottonelle products.  During a joint news conference in Washington D.C., the large corporation and the controversial non-governmental organization (NGO) announced an historic agreement that will ensure greater protection and sustainable management of Canada’s Boreal Forest.

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]]> http://sustainablog.org/2009/08/06/greenpeace-ends-kleercut-campaign-against-kimberly-clark/feed/ When the Sahara Was Green http://ecoworldly.com/2009/08/04/when-the-sahara-was-green/ http://ecoworldly.com/2009/08/04/when-the-sahara-was-green/#comments Tue, 04 Aug 2009 18:02:57 +0000 Michael Ricciardi http://ecoworldly.com/2009/08/04/when-the-sahara-was-green/ A satellite image of the Sahara by NASA World Wind

A satellite image of the Sahara by NASA World Wind

The discovery of ancient human burial site in Niger, Africa last Summer (by Paleontologist Paul Sereno, Univ. of Chicago) with graves possessing numerous artifacts and and even plant fibers and seeds, was indirect confirmation of what scientists have long known: that the Sahara region was once a lush, lake-strewn region hospitable to many early human groups. In addition, many other larger fauna, like hippos, populated the area.

How this transition to a most inhospitable, arid desert (known as desertification) occurred, and how long ago, has remained an open question. But a recent analysis of the sediments (published in Science, May 2008) from one of the only permanent lakes still existing in the Sahara region, Lake Yoa, in northern Chad, has begun to offer some answers.

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]]> http://ecoworldly.com/2009/08/04/when-the-sahara-was-green/feed/ Will the $30 Million Debt-for-Nature Swap Between U.S. and Indonesia Save Sumatra’s Forests? http://ecoworldly.com/2009/07/30/will-the-30-million-debt-for-nature-swap-between-us-and-indonesia-save-sumatras-forests/ http://ecoworldly.com/2009/07/30/will-the-30-million-debt-for-nature-swap-between-us-and-indonesia-save-sumatras-forests/#comments Thu, 30 Jul 2009 15:37:51 +0000 Rhishja Larson http://ecoworldly.com/2009/07/30/will-the-30-million-debt-for-nature-swap-between-us-and-indonesia-save-sumatras-forests/ Orangutan

In the largest debt-for-nature swap the U.S. government has organized so far under the U.S. Tropical Forest Conservation Act, the United States has signed an agreement with Indonesia to forgive nearly $30 million in debt.

The U.S. government has agreed to forgive $30 million in Indonesian debt in exchange for Indonesia’s agreement to protect Sumatran forests, according to Conservation International.

Indonesia is said to be the world’s largest emitter of carbon dioxide, behind the United States and China, because of its deforestation rate. These forests are home to critically endangered Sumatran rhinos, tigers, orangutans, and other rare wildlife.

How it works (in a nutshell)

Instead of repaying the debt, Indonesia is to place the money in a trust, to be paid over eight years, which will be used to protect 13 forest areas on Sumatra. Grants from the trust will be issued for critical forest conservation and restoration work in Sumatra.

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]]> http://ecoworldly.com/2009/07/30/will-the-30-million-debt-for-nature-swap-between-us-and-indonesia-save-sumatras-forests/feed/ Timberland Leather Won’t Come from Amazonian Cattle http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/07/29/timberland-leather-wont-come-from-amazonian-cattle/ http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/07/29/timberland-leather-wont-come-from-amazonian-cattle/#comments Wed, 29 Jul 2009 22:05:24 +0000 Bryan Nelson http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/07/29/timberland-leather-wont-come-from-amazonian-cattle/ Amazon deforestation

Timberland has announced a new policy agreement with Greenpeace to ensure that leather used in new boots and shoes won’t contribute to deforestation in the Amazon.

The policy will issue a moratorium on purchasing any cattle raised in newly deforested areas within the Amazon Rainforest, and it will force all of its suppliers to do the same.

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]]> http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/07/29/timberland-leather-wont-come-from-amazonian-cattle/feed/ Rubber Tree Growing in S. E. Asia Expanding, Along with Risks http://ecoworldly.com/2009/07/27/rubber-tree-growing-in-s-e-asia-expanding-along-with-risks/ http://ecoworldly.com/2009/07/27/rubber-tree-growing-in-s-e-asia-expanding-along-with-risks/#comments Mon, 27 Jul 2009 22:37:54 +0000 Michael Ricciardi http://ecoworldly.com/2009/07/27/rubber-tree-growing-in-s-e-asia-expanding-along-with-risks/ rubber tree plantation

Unrestricted expansion of rubber tree plantations in South East Asia could lead to “devastating environmental effects”, according to authors Ziegler, Fox and Xu writing in a May, 2009 perspective article in Science.

Throughout the “montane” (foot hill and low mountainous) mainland of South East Asia (inclusive of Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, and China), rubber plantations are expanding. So far, an estimated half million hectares have been planted, and by 2050, that land mass area could triple. This expansion will come at a cost to broad leaf, evergreen forests and “swidden” areas (with vegetation from older slash and burn efforts).

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]]> http://ecoworldly.com/2009/07/27/rubber-tree-growing-in-s-e-asia-expanding-along-with-risks/feed/ Nike Stops Use of Amazon Leather After Damning Greenpeace Report http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/07/23/nike-stops-use-of-amazon-leather-after-damning-greenpeace-report/ http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/07/23/nike-stops-use-of-amazon-leather-after-damning-greenpeace-report/#comments Thu, 23 Jul 2009 09:53:53 +0000 Andrew Williams http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/07/23/nike-stops-use-of-amazon-leather-after-damning-greenpeace-report/

Nike has stopped all imports of leather from the Amazon region of Brazil, after a Greenpeace report claimed that its shoes and trainers could be speeding up the destruction of the world’s largest rainforest and contributing to global warming.

The report, published last month, revealed how cattle hides from deforested areas were entering the supply chains of global brands including Nike, Clarks, Adidas and Reebok.

According to the NGO, deforestation for cattle ranching in Brazil alone is now the biggest driver of deforestation anywhere in the world.

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]]> http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/07/23/nike-stops-use-of-amazon-leather-after-damning-greenpeace-report/feed/ Pakistan Plants Half Million Trees in One Day, Breaks Guinness World Record http://ecoworldly.com/2009/07/16/pakistan-plants-half-million-trees-in-one-day-breaks-guinness-world-record/ http://ecoworldly.com/2009/07/16/pakistan-plants-half-million-trees-in-one-day-breaks-guinness-world-record/#comments Thu, 16 Jul 2009 23:21:26 +0000 Derek Markham http://ecoworldly.com/2009/07/16/pakistan-plants-half-million-trees-in-one-day-breaks-guinness-world-record/ 300 volunteers in Pakistan planted 541,176 mangrove trees by hand in a single day, setting the Guinness World Record for tree planting.

The volunteers, using no mechanical equipment, planted the mangroves in the Indus River Delta wetland ecosystem in the Southern Sindh Province of Pakistan, beating India in a friendly competition which seeks to preserve endangered forests and help temper the global warming effects of deforestation.

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]]> http://ecoworldly.com/2009/07/16/pakistan-plants-half-million-trees-in-one-day-breaks-guinness-world-record/feed/ Caribou and Reindeer Numbers Plummet by 60% Worldwide http://ecoworldly.com/2009/06/12/caribou-and-reindeer-numbers-plummet-by-60-worldwide/ http://ecoworldly.com/2009/06/12/caribou-and-reindeer-numbers-plummet-by-60-worldwide/#comments Fri, 12 Jun 2009 22:13:21 +0000 Bryan Nelson http://ecoworldly.com/2009/06/12/caribou-and-reindeer-numbers-plummet-by-60-worldwide/ Caribou

Results recently published in the journal Global Change Biology show a population drop of 60% in worldwide caribou and reindeer numbers over the last three decades.

The dramatic decline in population is likely due to climate change and increased industrial development in boreal forests around the world.

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]]> http://ecoworldly.com/2009/06/12/caribou-and-reindeer-numbers-plummet-by-60-worldwide/feed/ Global Warming Effects and Causes: A Top 10 List http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/06/07/global-warming-effects-and-causes-a-top-10-list/ http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/06/07/global-warming-effects-and-causes-a-top-10-list/#comments Sun, 07 Jun 2009 22:57:55 +0000 Derek Markham http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/06/07/global-warming-effects-and-causes-a-top-10-list/ Global Warming Effects and Causes One of the biggest issues facing us right now is global warming. Its effects on animals and on agriculture are indeed frightening, and the effects on the human population are even scarier. The facts about global warming are often debated, but unfortunately, even if we disagree about the causes, global warming effects are real, global, and measurable. The causes are mainly from us, the human race, and the effects on us will be severe.

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]]> http://planetsave.com/blog/2009/06/07/global-warming-effects-and-causes-a-top-10-list/feed/ Japan Loans Peru $120 Million to Conserve Amazon Rainforest http://ecoworldly.com/2009/05/12/japan-loans-peru-120-million-to-conserve-amazon-rainforest/ http://ecoworldly.com/2009/05/12/japan-loans-peru-120-million-to-conserve-amazon-rainforest/#comments Tue, 12 May 2009 10:15:36 +0000 Levi Novey http://ecoworldly.com/2009/05/12/japan-loans-peru-120-million-to-conserve-amazon-rainforest/ Japan has agreed to supply Peru with a $120 million loan to help protect approximately 136 million acres of the Amazon Rainforest from deforestation.

The loan will have an annual interest rate of 0.1% and won’t need to be repaid for 40 years. It is part of a plan to help Peru reach a rate of zero deforestation in the next 10 years. Peru’s Minister of the Environment says that the amount of forest that will be protected help store 20 million tons of carbon dioxide each year, aiding in efforts to combat global climate change.

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]]> http://ecoworldly.com/2009/05/12/japan-loans-peru-120-million-to-conserve-amazon-rainforest/feed/ Haiti’s Poverty is Directly Linked to Deforestation and Habitat Loss http://redgreenandblue.org/2009/05/10/haitis-poverty-is-directly-linked-to-deforestation-and-habitat-loss/ http://redgreenandblue.org/2009/05/10/haitis-poverty-is-directly-linked-to-deforestation-and-habitat-loss/#comments Sun, 10 May 2009 22:50:37 +0000 Amiel Blajchman http://redgreenandblue.org/2009/05/10/haitis-poverty-is-directly-linked-to-deforestation-and-habitat-loss/ Haiti continues to claim the dubious honour of being ranked as the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, with 80% of this Caribbean nation’s population living under the poverty line and 54% in abject poverty. Haiti’s sorrowful rank as the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere and one of the poorest in the world has been directly attributed to the degradation of Haiti’s natural environment (less than 1.5% of its original tree cover remains intact) as well as a lack of governance structures, underinvestment in social capital, obstacles to private investment, and a spiraling “poverty trap“.

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]]> http://redgreenandblue.org/2009/05/10/haitis-poverty-is-directly-linked-to-deforestation-and-habitat-loss/feed/ 65 Million Trees Planted and Counting http://ecoworldly.com/2009/04/21/65-million-trees-planted-and-counting/ http://ecoworldly.com/2009/04/21/65-million-trees-planted-and-counting/#comments Tue, 21 Apr 2009 05:32:53 +0000 Gavin Hudson http://ecoworldly.com/2009/04/21/65-million-trees-planted-and-counting/ Cherry tree on a farmlandTrees for the Future, a US-based NGO, has planted 65 million trees in dozens of countries. And they’re still going.

For almost exactly 20 years now, Trees for the Future has been coaching farmers on sustainable agroforestry techniques. That’s a fancy way to say farmers can improving their soil and crop quality by planting trees around the farm. The trees help by holding in soil moisture and drawing water back to refill water tables, preventing erosion and improving soil fertility.

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]]> http://ecoworldly.com/2009/04/21/65-million-trees-planted-and-counting/feed/ Climate Change and Deforestation Engaging in Vicious Cycle of Destruction http://sustainablog.org/2009/04/16/climate-change-and-deforestation-engaging-in-vicious-cycle-of-destruction/ http://sustainablog.org/2009/04/16/climate-change-and-deforestation-engaging-in-vicious-cycle-of-destruction/#comments Thu, 16 Apr 2009 12:50:35 +0000 Elizabeth Balkan http://sustainablog.org/2009/04/16/climate-change-and-deforestation-engaging-in-vicious-cycle-of-destruction/ deforestation climate change amazon forest rain precipitation logging biofuel palm oil plantation copenhagen temperatureMost of you know by now that deforestation, and the emissions that cleared forestlands add to the atmosphere, exacerbates climate change. But it may come as a surprise to learn that the opposite is true. New scientific findings suggest that climate change is threatening remaining forests more dramatically than previously suspected.

Until recently, climate scientists thought that trees, and the biodiversity they support, could withstand a temperature rise lower than 3C. New findings, announced at last month’s Copenhagen “Congress” to discuss climate issues, estimate that a 3C temperature rise will result in a 75% loss of forests. The report’s sponsoring organization, the UK Meteorological Office’s climate change research division, has said that a 4C temperature rise - consistent with current human activities - will cause 85% of trees to disappear.

Under even the most conservative climate change scenario - a 1C temperature jump - will kill off one third of Amazonian forests, which alone contain one tenth of total carbon stored in land ecosystems.

Scientists now estimate that the chance of staying below a 2C temperature rise are only 50%, even if drastic cuts in emissions take place over the next ten years. Already, a .75C temperature rise above pre-industrial has been locked-in, with another .6C expected, based solely upon current levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

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