Reforestation, family style
Promoting tree planting
The ice age and the Amazon
UN meeting on deforestation
New environmental declaration
Afforestation in Indonesia
European air-pollution control
Trees damaged by SO2
United Nations agencies environmental education for engineers
New CO2 action plan
Japan-US environmental meeting
IUCN publications
Ecology saint proclaimed
TV series on the Andes
Black rhino returns
Spiders replace chemicals in China
Malaysian film on the environment
South Pacific commission environmental education film
Governments and UN agencies have begun to discuss a single policy and a division of responsibilities for control of tropical deforestation
A single broad plan for dealing with tropical forest depletion and degradation was the object of a meeting of forestry experts from governments and United Nations agencies held in March 1980 at the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in Nairobi.
Beyond a plan of action, the participants discussed a division of responsibility and labour among concerned governments and international agencies. The broad objective is to arrive at an "integrated programme of activities for the conservation and wise utilization of tropical forests," according to one of the documents of the meeting. The participants represented 25 governments, and four United Nations agencies, UNCTAD, UNEP, Unesco and FAO.
A consensus was reached that tropical forests must be used in a balanced way, allowing for economic and social development, but stressing environmental conservation. Neither a precise programme of action, nor funding levels were agreed upon. Presumably, this will come later. It was decided that UNEP, in collaboration with Unesco and FAO, should proceed with arrangements for a second meeting of experts to continue the talks.
Among the subjects discussed were: rain-forest research, monitoring and assessment, land-use classification and planning, training, education and public awareness, national policies, laws and institutions, agri-forestry, community forestry and ecologically sound rural development; and national parks and protected areas.
FAO's representative expressed two reservations to the meeting's "overview document". First, he said, the document did not look closely enough at the underlying causes of tropical deforestation, namely irrational agricultural development and settlement caused by uneven land distribution, increasing population and agricultural stagnation. Second, it treated exploitation as an "absolute evil," with no reference to silviculture and sustained production.
In general, however, the document's recommendations were very similar to those formulated over the years by the FAO Committee on Forest Development in the Tropics. This Committee, at its last meeting in May 1981), recommended that FAO continue to take the leading role within the UN system on matters related to tropical forestry.
Authorities in the Serang district of West Java, Indonesia, have found a novel way to reforest the area by making couples who want to marry, divorce or remarry first plant trees. Couples wishing to marry must plant two fruit trees. Those who want to divorce are required to plant five trees, while couples wishing to remarry each other must plant three trees. The move was made to ensure that Serang continues as a major fruit-producing area of Java.
The International Tree Crops Institute now has an Australian office. It: will be run by Melbourne-based agricultural and forestry journalist, Geoff Wilson, in an honorary capacity.
Aim of the institute is to promote research, development and practical application of tree farming, agro-forestry and conservation tree-planting.
The ITCI was founded in the United Kingdom in 1977, and it has since pursued a supporting role for research into the growing of trees for food, fodder, firewood, timber, soil and conservation and other uses important to farmers and the world community.
Scientists are trying to work out a conservation programme for the Amazonian rain forests of Brazil following patterns established during periods of glaciation millions of years ago.
According to a report by Earthscan, an environmental information agency supported by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), birds, butterflies, trees and reptiles show distribution patterns that identify "Pleistocene refugia," or sections of the PRIMEVAL forest that are much older than others.
"It seems that during the cold dry glacial periods of the Pleistocene epoch, which occurred between 2 million and 10 000 years ago, the Amazon forest persisted in fragments instead of as continuous forest," the report says. "Such fragments would have been cut off for long periods, long enough for isolated populations to evolve into many new species."
The authors of the report are Thomas Lovejoy, vice-president for science of the American branch of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), and Maria Tereza Jorge de Padua, director of Brazil's national parks. They describe a project run by WWF and the Brazilian Government scientists that "makes the most of a Brazilian Government rule that 50 percent of the area held by each land development scheme has to remain in forest".
It is the older patches of forests, the "refugia," that would support the greatest numbers of species because it is in these areas that plants and animals have had the longest period of time in which to evolve. Once these patches have been identified, the scientists hope to make up their 50 percent of protected forest on that basis, even if the result is a discontinuous series of reserves rather than one large tract.
TONY SAMSTAG
The Times, London
International experts met in Nairobi, Kenya, 25 February to 1 March 1980, to discuss ways to slow down the rate of tropical deforestation. The meeting was convened as a result of a decision made by the UNEP Governing Council, April 1979, and was sponsored in cooperation with FAO and Unesco.
The purpose of the meeting was to adopt a plan of action to control the problem of deforestation and to decide on a division of labour and responsibility among national governments and international agencies for "an integrated programme of activities for the conservation and wise utilization of tropical forests." A consensus was reached that tropical forests must be used in a balanced way, allowing development but stressing conservation. However, neither funding levels nor a precise programme of action were agreed upon. Among the subjects discussed were: rain-forest research, monitoring and assessment; land-use classification and planning; training, education and public awareness; national policies, laws, and institutions; agri-forestry, community forestry and ecologically sound rural development; and parks and protected areas.
In its statement to the meeting, IUCN underscored the potential of tropical forests for new commodities products, food and fibre production, and genetic resources for use in applied biology. The causes and rates of deforestation, the IUCN said, vary from country to country, and governments should adopt policies for forest management and rural development that consider all the potential benefits of forests for sustainable development.
Nine international development institutions have now signed a "Declaration of Environmental Policies and Procedures Relating to Economic Development." Seven of them signed on 1 February 1980 at the UN headquarters in New York: the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, the European Development Fund, the Inter-American Development Bank, the Organization of American States, the UN Development Programme, the UN Environment Programme and the World Bank. Two other institutions, the African Development Bank and the Caribbean Development Bank, signed later. These nine together spend $10 thousand million a year on new development projects.
Outlined in the Declaration are cooperative measures to integrate environmental policies with development. Among the principles adopted are: (1) systematic examinations of development activities being considered for financing; (2) the integration of environment and development through negotiations with national and international bodies; (3) technical assistance on environmental affairs to be given at the request of developing countries; (4) research into ways of improving the evaluation of projects in terms of the environment, including cost-benefit analyses; and (5) preparation and dissemination of audiovisual material highlighting the environmental dimension of development.
Dr. Mostafe Tolba, UNEP Executive Director, said that UNEP is preparing suggested guidelines in six areas of development activity which loan institutions could use in modifying their procedures for appraising projects.
A programme of afforestation has been started on the north coast of West Java, Indonesia. Plantings of Rhizophora, Avicenia and Acacia auriculiformis are being made to serve three purposes: (1) to prevent coast erosion; (2) as a windshield from the sea, and (3) to supply fuelwood for the people. The plantings will be about 400 metres wide and will skirt the tidal forests in the Purwakarta Forest District, Cikiong Sub-Forest District and the Pamanukan Sub-Forest District.
According to the district rangers, village roads and people's yards will also be afforested. Most of this will be done with Acacia auriculiformis between the eight kilometre stretch from the hamlet of Pakis to the hamlet of Cibuaya. One problem, the rangers say, is that border poles are being stolen and that concrete poles may have to be substituted. People have been using the poles instead of grinding stones because stones are very scarce.
According to the Council of Europe's Nature Newsletter, regulations controlling air pollution now exist in every country in Europe. The EEC proposals regarding maximum concentrations of sulphur dioxide (high acidity) and particles (smoke) have not, however, been accepted by all countries. No Community directives have been proposed on industrial emissions, but each country here has its own legislation, the most elaborate being in the Federal Republic of Germany.
Expenditures on air purification equipment are roughly the same in all European countries, according to a study by the US Chamber of Commerce. During the period 1972-75, a per caput average of between US$1 and $1.70 was spent. In 1978, this had risen to between $1.40 and $2.80 per caput.
Sulphur dioxide emissions from pulp mills and oil-fired power stations can stunt the growth of pine trees, according to the results of a three-year study conducted by Mr. Lars Westman of the Institute for Ecological Botany at Umea University, Sweden.
Studies conducted near one sulphate mill showed that 50 to 100-year-old trees within 500-1 000 metres of the mill suffered a 24 percent reduction in growth over the period 1946-70. Trees older than that lost 35 percent of their expected growth. Damage was observed on trees as far away as 35 kilometres.
Sulphate mills, however, were less damaging to pine trees than sulphite mills, according to Westman's study. Trees within three kilometres of one sulphite mill studied became exposed to 2 000 micrograms of sulphur dioxide per cubic metre of air. This level of exposure causes "irreparable damage" to a tree's assimilation capacity. Such emissions also caused soil acidification, resulting in a loss of 17 percent in growth over the 1946-70 time period for trees up to 12 kilometres from the mill.
Two United Nations agencies, Unesco and UNEP, have organized new environmental education programmes in seven Latin American countries. The programmes are aimed at engineering students at universities in Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Mexico and Venezuela.
Over the past century the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has increased by about 15 percent. The main causes of this increase have been burning of fossil fuels, deforestation and changes in land use. This fundamental change, according to a booklet published by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) entitled The world climate programme (Geneva, 1980), "can contribute to a gradual warming of the lower atmosphere."
Now the WMO, in conjunction with UNEP and the International Council of Scientific Unions (ICSU), has recommended that an International Plan of Action be developed for the "Environmental assessment of changes in carbon dioxide levels." This recommendation was made at a recent joint meeting in Nairobi, Kenya. One of the first steps in fulfilling this action plan has already been taken, namely a joint scientific committee meeting of WMO and ICSU in March 1980 in Utrecht, the Netherlands.
Japan and the United States have very different cultural and historic al backgrounds, but they are both heavily populated industrial nations with similar environmental problems. The two countries recently completed their second joint environmental conference at Stanford University and San Diego, California, 30 June to 8 July 1980. 'Fine conference brought together representatives of conservation organizations, universities, industry and government agencies for the purpose of exchanging information, comparing their environmental efforts and looking at the possibility of transferring environmental management techniques. The first bilateral conference was held in Yokohama in 1978.
The conference opened with four days of lectures, workshops and discussions on the Stanford campus. day focused on case studies in a particular subject area environmental law, toxic and hazardous urban waste, rare and overabundant species, and petroleum and alternate energy sources in the eighties. There were field trips to Yosemite National Park, Mono Lake and the City of Los Angeles Water Department storage systems in the Owens Valley.
Then the conference site moved farther south to San Diego, which is Yokohama's "sister city," and case studies of deep-sea mining, coastal planning, marine mammals and fisheries.
The International Union for -the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has released its 1980 publications catalogue containing 68 different items. These items are grouped in six categories: new and forthcoming publications, conservation and development, environmental policy and law, regional conservation, national parks and other protected areas, and species conservation.
One of the new publications, available for $7.50, is the United Nations list of national parks and equivalent reserves (1980 Edition), which is an important updated version of the 1975 worldwide list of national parks, nature reserves, biosphere reserves and World Heritage sites. There is also a comparative, 17-nation study written by Duncan Poore and Paule Gry-Ambroes entitled Nature conservation in northern and western Europe, which costs $17.50.
Of particular interest to developing countries are books written by Duncan Poore and William E. Odum, respectively, entitled Ecological guidelines for development in tropical rain forests (1976, $7.50) and Ecological guidelines for tropical coastal development (1976, $7.50). Also available is the IUCN's comprehensive, 4-volume Red data book describing all the world's threatened mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish, in addition to the companion volume Plant red data book, describing 250 selected threatened plants.
All inquiries should be addressed to: Bowker Publishing Co., PO Box 5, Epping, Essex CM16 4BU, England.
Pope John Paul II, who has frequently spoken out in favour of conservation, has proclaimed St. Francis of Assisi (1182-1226) the Patron Saint of Ecology. Issued on Easter Sunday, 1980, the Pope's proclamation said that St. Francis had "considered Nature a marvellous gift from God to all humanity."
Six South American countries are jointly producing a series of 102 programmes for educational television with the title "Expedition Andina" (Expedition in the Andes). The countries involved are Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela.
The purpose of the scheduled TV series is to increase awareness of the need to preserve and develop the shared cultural values which distinguish the Andean region. Among the themes selected are: environment, housing and agriculture, arts and crafts, and pre-Colombian architecture.
The black rhino is staging a comeback in South Africa and in southwest Africa/Namibia. The animal was nearly exterminated in the nineteenth century and its numbers had dwindled to around 100 by 1930.
Three factors are credited for the resurgence. First, local national parks boards and other authorities have strictly protected the black rhino through game preserves and national parks; second, black rhinos have been re-located to safer areas in cases where they were endangered; and third, new populations have been established in appropriate areas.
An encouraging new step toward integrated pest control management has taken place in China. Efforts by agricultural workers and researchers have resulted in the discovery of 125 species of spiders in 18 different provinces which can be used in place of chemical pesticides to control insects harmful to rice crops.
States a report by the New China News Agency from Changsha, in Human Province, "The use of spiders has resulted in reduction of the use of chemical pesticides, lowering the amount of chemical residue in the rice and increasing rice yields without increasing expenses."
Researchers found that if the proportion of spiders to insects is 1:20, they can destroy nearly all of the insects in a rice field within six days. Moreover, each spider can live for 1-2 years, survive for months without food and eat nothing but insects.
In 1976 spiders were used on test plots covering 23 hectares. By 1978 they were being used regularly on 73 000 hectares with uniformly good results.
Another film on the environmental crisis has been made by the Consumers' Association of Penang (Malaysia). Entitled Crisis in the Malaysian environment, the 16-mm, 21-minute colour film highlights three villages affected by industrial pollution and land mismanagement.
Various aspects of the environmental problem are shown, in particular the country's rapid deforestation: predictions are being made that there will be no forests at all left in Malaysia by 1980 if present trends continue. Other topics presented are pollution of rivers and seas, sewage disposal, urban congestion and air pollution.
The film costs M$1 000 or its equivalent. Inquiries should be made to: Khor Kok Peng, Research Director, Consumers' Association of Penang, 27 Kelawai Road, Penang, Malaysia.
The first educational film produced by the South Pacific Commission has now been released after two years in production.
Story of an island: managing your island environment tells the story of a typical tropical island and how its environment changes from the original undisturbed state to the present. It shows the environmental destruction that can result from bad resource-management practices, and illustrates what this can mean for the future of the island. It also demonstrates principles of good environmental management, and tells how rural islanders, both young and old, can work to protect village resources.
The film is intended for rural adult and youth audiences in the Pacific Islands, but it could also be useful in other island areas with similar conditions. It may be used in conservation programmes, in agricultural, forestry and fisheries extension activities, and in school programme. The editing and narration were designed to be easily understood by rural audiences. The film was made by Island Image Productions Noumea, for the South Pacific Commission, using footage shot in Western Samoa, New Caledonia and the Loyalty Islands. It shows fishing, gardening, and other resource use, as well as problems like erosion and water pollution. Logging is used as an example of major development projects. The actual scenes showing different Island peoples are mixed with views of a model island which goes through many stages from virgin purity to total environmental collapse or sustainable resource management.
The film is intended to raise questions and to encourage discussion more than to provide specific answers (which local people should do for themselves). It aims to help people re-examine their present use of resources (land, sea, water, plants and animals), and to think about the direction development is taking on their island.
This is a 16-mm colour film with optical sound track in English or French and is 45 minutes long. Prints are being given by SPC to each country in the area for which SPC works. Copies are also available on loan within the SPC area from the Librarian, South Pacific Commission, Noumea. Prints may be purchased from SPC at cost, at present CFP 25 000 (A$300), or less if more than one print is ordered at a time. A written script is available with the film so that a narration can be arranged in local languages.
