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News The Conference of Ministers of Agriculture Sielnica, Slovakia 3.- 4.11.2005 “Sustainable Development in Agriculture and Forestry Sectors” The Central European Initiative (CEI – www.ceinet.org ) is composed of 17 Member States: Albania, Austria, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Italy, Macedonia, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Serbia and Montenegro, Slovakia, Slovenia and Ukraine.
News This is the conclusion of a recent report made by the Norwegian Institute of Land Inventory (NIJOS). Existing forests absorb almost 21 million tons of carbon dioxide. This figure equals 38 per cent of Norway’s climatic gas emissions of human origin.
News PARIS - Avian flu, believed to be carried south from China and Siberia by migrating wildfowl, threatens to push some of the world's rarest birds towards extinction, conservation groups said on Thursday. Experts also voiced concern that any attempts to cull wildfowl suspected of carrying the disease could simply scatter the virus more widely by driving flocks away from their normal routes, doing more harm than good.
October 21, 2005 As much as 5 – 15 million cubic meters of living forest risk being attacked by bark beetles in the course of the next four years. If 2 – 3 million cubic meters of storm-felled timber will be left lying in the forest over the next summer, Sweden may be confronted with a more serious insect problem than ever before. This is the conclusion drawn by the National Board of Forestry in its second report to the Swedish Government concerning the monitoring of insect attacks after the storm Gudrun.
KEY FACTS Without harvesting a single extra tree Australias forest industries have the capacity to supply 30% of the national renewable energy target. This is equivalent to the generation of electricity for 400,000 homes each year, with the greenhouse benefit of taking 200,000 cars off the road.
News ISABELLE RODRIGUE OTTAWA (CP) - Hit hard by the softwood lumber dispute with the U.S. and restrictions on logging imposed by the provincial government, Quebec's forest industry is getting a multi-million boost from the federal and provincial governments
Countryside campaigners have lost their latest bid to overturn the ban on hunting with dogs, after nine Law Lords unanimously ruled it would remain. The Countryside Alliance had argued the legislation used to force the ban through in England and Wales - the 1949 Parliament Act - was illegal. But Lord Bingham of Cornhill, head of the panel of Lords, said it was valid.
News National Assembly for Wales The aim of The Wood Awards is to recognise and encourage outstanding design, craftmanship and installation in joinery and structures in wood. The Wood Awards 2005 is being held on 19th October at Carpenters' Hall in City of London. Entries are now closed for this years' awards having received over 170 category entries.
News Photo: ForestPress MAURITIUS, PORT LOUIS - Mauritius Prime Minister Navin Ramgoolam said on Saturday he would stop the construction of a road aimed at speeding up journeys to tourist resorts after environmentalists complained it would destroy rare forests. Work started last year to build a highway through Ferney Valley, primarily to service the island's lucrative tourism industry, but environmentalists say it would wipe out flora and fauna found nowhere else in the world.
News Geneva - "Preventing illegal logging in forest areas where timber harvesting is strictly prohibited should be a high priority for governments", says the joint WBCSD/ICFPA position paper to the ENA FLEG Ministerial Conference, which will take place from 22-25 November 2005 in St. Petersburg, Russia. "Governments must use existing legislation and deploy enforcement agencies to address criminal action."
News Mr. John Browne TD, Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture and Food with special responsibility for forestry, today stressed the importance of plant health and the protection of the forest estate from pests, diseases and other threats. He stressed that this is vital in order to sustain the growth in the forestry sector. Ireland has a high standard of plant health and the Department of Agriculture and Food operates controls under both national and EU legislation to maintain and where possible enhance this status.
News (Nairobi) The ban was imposed by the Minister for Natural Resources and Tourism, Mrs Zakia Meghji. The minister's action followed press reports in recent months that the highly-priced tree was being harvested indiscriminately and exported to Europe, the Middle East and Asia, especially India where sandalwood is widely used to manufacture expensive perfumes.
News USDA FOREST SERVICE UNVEILS DISTANCE-LEARNING CONSERVATION PROGRAM ON AMERICA'S RAIN FORESTS Educational program will be launched this Friday in a live broadcast via satellite and state-of-the-art web resources WASHINGTON, Students across the world can now experience America's rain forests without ever stepping outside their classrooms--thanks to an interactive conservation education program developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, the Prince William Network and a host of other partners.
News The Finnish forestry taxation system is changing. During 2005 two parallel systems are still in operation; the newer of them is based on true forestry income from timber sales profits. The older system, forest area taxation, is based on calculated forest income, which is taxed annually.
News BERLIN - Responsibility for Germany's booming renewable energy sector in a future coalition government will remain with the environment ministry, the leader of Germany's Social Democrats (SPD) said on Monday. "As for energy policy, things will stay as they are. In very rough terms, classical (sources of energy) will stay in the economy ministry and renewables in the environment ministry," SPD leader Franz Muentefering told a news conference.
News Parliamentarians from more than 20 European countries have called on the EU to develop a combined renewable energy and energy efficiency strategy (Reees). The declaration follows the latest biannual inter-parliamentary meeting on renewables and energy efficiency, held in Edinburgh.
News Acacia longifolia (Andrews) Black wattle is an invasive plant in Brazil. (Photo courtesy Horus Institute) BRASILIA, Brazil - Dozens of non-native animal species - from water buffalo and wild boars to giant African snails - have invaded Brazil’s environment, causing trouble for native ecosystems. They are all being considered this week at Brazil's first symposium on invasive species here in Brasilia.
News Governments – significant actors for certification of sustainable forest management Geneva - Forest certification is a voluntary market-based instrument to promote sustainable forest management, and, as such, driven by market actors. However governments have a major role to play in setting out a policy and institutional framework, and as significant actors themselves, for instance as forest owners and, increasingly, as buyers of wood products. They may also contribute to capacity building, provide support, including finance, to drafting national standards and putting in place the necessary institutions, moderate between competing schemes and provide assurance of a level playing field in international trade and on domestic markets.
