News

'Mangroves can act as shield against tsunami' (The Hindu/ForestPress)

By G. Venkataramani CHENNAI, "Tsunami is a rare phenomenon. Though we cannot prevent the occurrence of such natural calamities, we should certainly prepare ourselves to mitigate the impact of the natural fury on the population inhabiting the coastal ecosystems. Our anticipatory research work to preserve mangrove ecosystems as the first line of defence against devastating tidal waves on the eastern coastline has proved very relevant today.

2004. December 29.

Hardwood Lumber Market Observation (Hardwood Market Weekly)

December 28, 2004 Sales activity was slower than needed for a 'healthy' market. Red Oak sales were particularly difficult for many sellers; "as slow as I can remember," noted one contact. Heavy demand for green and KD Hard Maple was the most notable exception. More green lumber was available and a number of buyers slowed incoming shipments. With the exception of a few species, it was much harder to move green production. Mills held out hope that purchasers were just holding off until after the first of the year. Log supplies were mixed, but most contacts still felt that lumber production was too high for current demand.

2004. December 28.

Penguins escape huge earthquake (BBC News)

Macquarie penguins appear to have escaped the worst An earthquake on a remote Antarctic archipelago home to 850,000 King Penguins was the strongest on earth in four years, seismologists say. The quake hit 400km (250 miles) off the Macquarie Islands on Friday, measuring 8.1 on the Richter scale. Penguins appear to have escaped a major disaster as the quake occurred deep under the sea, far from inhabited land. There were no tsunamis, or large tidal waves, because the quake moved horizontally rather than vertically.

2004. December 27.

ARTIFICIAL CHRISTMAS TREES (CBC)

News Release – Canadian Food Inspection Agency CFIA ADVISES CONSUMERS AND RETAILERS OF RISK ASSOCIATED WITH SOME ARTIFICIAL CHRISTMAS TREES: Cascade Pre-lit Alpine, Six ft. Dakota Alpine OTTAWA, December 23, 2004 - The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) is advising consumers that artificial Christmas trees from Polytree Hong Kong Co. Ltd pose a risk of infestation to Canadian trees. The affected product was made with tree trunks which were improperly treated to kill the Brown Fir Longhorned Beetle.

2004. December 27.

New Forest Plan Would Lessen Restraints (White House - AP/ForestPress)

WASHINGTON - December 22, 2004. By MATTHEW DALY, Associated Press Writer Managers of the nation's 155 national forests will have more leeway to approve logging and other commercial projects with less formal environmental review under a new Bush administration plan, The Associated Press has learned. The long-awaited plan will overhaul application of the landmark 1976 National Forest Management Act, which sets the basic rules for management of nation's 191 million acres of forests and grasslands and protects forest wildlife. Forest Service officials scheduled a Wednesday conference call to announce the changes, which will be published in the Federal Register next week. The Associated Press obtained highlights of the plan, which goes into effect following publication.

2004. December 23.

News

EU Divided on Plans to Curb Illegal Timber Trade (Reuters)

- EU members are divided over a European Commission plan to crack down on the lucrative illegal timber trade by making exporters prove their wood is not from endangered rainforests, officials said on Tuesday. EU farm ministers were discussing a voluntary timber certification system that might lead to a global agreement to clean up the $150 billion global forest product trade. A key part of 's battle against illegal logging is to stop laundered profits being diverted into organised crime. One way that the Commission, the EU's executive, wants to achieve this is to ensure imports are accompanied by paperwork showing the timber comes from approved forests.

2004. December 22.

The Guatemalan Fir (Reuters/ForestPress)

Story by Frank Jack Daniel GUATEMALA CITY - Police have seized thousands of branches of an endangered Guatemalan scented fir species used for Christmas trees in a clampdown to protect it against extinction, police said on Tuesday. Environmental police found more than 4,000 of the branches, which have a natural lemon aroma, hidden under the false floor of a truck parked at a makeshift seasonal market in Guatemala City on Monday. Poor street vendors staple the blue green cuttings to poles and sell them as Christmas trees, a practice that stretches back 50 years to when U.S.-style Christmas decorations became fashionable in Guatemala.

2004. December 22.

News

Hungarian Forest Owners Association Established (ForestPress)

Under the name of Hungarian Forest Owners’ Association, a new organisation took wing on 17th December 2004. On the statutory meeting chairman Pál Telegdy, forestry engineer addressed the assembly.

2004. December 22.

The First Electric Christmas Tree (forestry.about.com/ForestPress)

Edison to General Electric The Thomas Edison Connection: An associate and friend of Thomas Edison, Edward Johnson, is recognized as the first person to put electrified lights on a real Christmas tree. It happened in 1882 and just three years after the incandescent light bulb was invented. Johnson was a New Yorker and an executive of the Edison Illumination Company of New York City. Although the press smelled a publicity stunt, the event took place at Johnson's home in support of his belief in the lighting product's safety.

2004. December 21.

Saudis to sign up to Kyoto (Reuters/ForestPress)

From correspondents in Riyadh SAUDI Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, gave its approval today to the Kyoto protocol which aims to stem global warming, the official Saudi Press Agency said. It said the decision was taken by ministers at a weekly cabinet meeting and a royal decree was being prepared to formally endorse the step. As a developing country, Saudi Arabia would not be subject to emissions cuts under Kyoto, a requirement only binding 30 industrialised nations.

2004. December 21.

3rd Expert Meeting on Forest-related Definitions 17-19 January 2005, Rome (ForestPress)

Objectives - take stock of developments in forest-related reporting processes since the 2nd meeting; - harmonize definitions related to (a) biophysical constitutions of forest resources, and (b) human interventions to manage forests for various purposes. Background In 2002, FAO hosted two Expert Meetings on Harmonizing Forest- related Definitions for Use by Various Stakeholders, which were jointly organized with IPCC, CIFOR, UNEP and IUFRO. Over 50 experts, some from these organizations and others from countries, UNESCO, CBD, UNFCCC, the private sector and NGOs, came together to discuss an analytical framework on forest-related definitions, develop options for harmonizing core forest-related definitions, and discuss follow-up actions.

2004. December 20.

Voted Most Popular Christmas Tree (forestry.about.com)

Ten Top Christmas Tree Species Sold in North America The following Christmas Tree species have been voted the most popular Christmas trees grown and sold in the United States. They are listed according to their popularity - The National Christmas Tree Association suggests that this season, "36 million U.S. families plan to focus their holiday traditions around a real Christmas tree". That means tens of millions of real trees will be sold this year starting in mid-November. NCTA also says that "about 23 percent of the consumers will purchase their trees from a 'Christmas tree farm' while about 62 percent will buy trees from a retail lot." About 300,000 consumers will purchase their real tree over the Internet or by mail order (see Internet sales). It is estimated that "46 million households plan to use a new or used artificial tree this season" instead of a real tree. Another 22 million households don’t plan to have a Christmas tree.

2004. December 19.

Compromise seals climate meeting (BBC News)

December 18. 2004. Delegates at the UN climate change conference in Buenos Aires have reached agreement on ways to address the issue of global warming. They approved a compromise proposal on the format of future discussions agreed by the US and the EU overnight. Some developing countries had threatened to derail the deal, insisting on guarantees that they would not be subjected to emission cuts. But the demand was rejected by the EU and a new compromise emerged.

2004. December 19.

Online knowledge resource for national forest assessments (ForestPress)

An on-line Knowledge Reference on National Forest Assessment has been developed by FAO Forestry Department together with the International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO). The reference is intended to serve as a worldwide knowledge resource for national forest assessments among foresters, scientists, teachers and other stakeholders, particular aiming at needs of developing countries. Since informed decisions about forest resources at national level have to be based on systematic inventory and monitoring, the reference will be a useful tool to support sustainable management of forest resources in the countries.

2004. December 17.

Scientists find new Indian monkey (BBC News)

By Alex Kirby environment correspondent A species of monkey unknown to science has been photographed in India by an international team of researchers. The monkey, a member of the macaque family, was sighted in the state of Arunachal Pradesh, which lies in the country's remote north-eastern region. Named the Arunachal macaque, the new monkey is a comparatively large brown primate with a relatively short tail. The scientists say they are surprised to have found a hitherto unknown large mammal in such a populous country.

2004. December 17.

Mutual respect will help solve divisive forest issues, says Council Chair (ForestPress)

YOKOHAMA, JAPAN, 13 December 2004:Mutual respect will help solve divisive forest issues, says Council Chair. Potentially divisive issues to be debated this week at the 37th session of the International Tropical Timber Council will be dealt with constructively because of the prevailing atmosphere of mutual respect among its member countries, according to the Council’s Chairperson. The Council is the governing body of the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO), an intergovernmental organization dedicated to the conservation and sustainable management, use and trade of tropical forest resources. Items on the Council’s agenda this week include analysis of issues relating to forest law enforcement, forest certification and the expansion of trade in tropical timber; in the past, these issues have sparked controversy between countries of the north and south. Reports will also be presented on ITTO missions to Fiji, Cambodia and Panama, which were mandated to identify those factors most limiting progress towards sustainable forest management in each country and to formulate action plans to help overcome such obstacles.

2004. December 15.

German forests in worse state than ever before (New Scientist/AFP)

BERLIN (AFP) - German forests are starting to show the drastic effects of the 2003 heatwave and have never been in such a poor state, a government report warned. Agriculture Minister Renate Kuenast said at least a third of trees in German forests were shedding their leaves and pine needles prematurely.

2004. December 14.

Denmark to grant Kenya 17.3m dollars to manage environment (Science News/(AFP)

NAIROBI – Denmark has agreed to grant Kenya 1.4 billion shillings (about 17.3 million dollars) to support environmental programmes, Environment Minister Kalonzo Musyoka said. The funds will be disbursed from January 2006 over a period of four years, Musyoka said in a statement.

2004. December 11.