TAKE ACTION: Oil Palm Threatens Indonesia's Rainforests and Orangutans.

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Action Alert: Oil Palm Threatens Indonesia's Rainforests and Orangutans

TAKE ACTION: http://www.rainforestportal.org/alerts/send.asp?id=indonesia

Chinese funded development a ploy to access rainforest timbers, will devastate Borneo's biodiversity and largest remaining wild orangutan populationBy Rainforest Portal, a project of Ecological Internet - February 20, 2006

 

 

 

 

 

 

Natural ancient rainforests are too valuable to be replaced by oil palm plantations (link)

Indonesia plans to cut a 2,000 kilometer long, five kilometer wide swathe through one of the world's largest remaining areas of pristine rainforest to create a massive oil palm plantation. The project would destroy two million hectares of ancient rainforest in West and East Kalimantan, traversing almost the entire border with Malaysia, and slicing through three national parks. These remote rainforests on the island of Borneo are home to countless species of rare birds, plants and mammals including the largest remaining wild orangutan population.This Chinese-funded "agricultural development" is almost certainly a thinly veiled ruse to access timber. Several studies have found the region is too mountainous to support effective palm oil farming, and is economically unviable as it would cost the country billions of dollars a year. In the past many supposed oil palm developers have abandoned projects after completing rainforest clearance. Indonesia has huge land areas of abandoned, unproductive palm oil plantations and degraded forest areas that would be suitable for oil palm development.The project would be environmentally devastating to Borneo, a hotspot for biodiversity. Palm oil plantations - which completely clear the rainforests and are biologically depauperate - are the number one enemy of orangutans and all wildlife in Borneo. Orangutans need vast areas of interconnected forest to survive, and this ill-conceived project would speed up their extinction. According to Friends of the Earth, the business as usual palm oil trade will cause the extinction of the orangutan within 12 years. Further, these rainforests encompass over half of Borneo's watersheds, and their clearing would damage clean water sources for much of Indonesian Borneo.Indonesia is already losing two million hectares of rainforest every year. It is vital to Indonesia and the World's ecological sustainability that no more ancient primary rainforests are cleared for oil palm. Let the Indonesian President know he must cancel the Kalimantan project, and that new oil palm plantations should be built only in previously cleared and unused areas. Note your protest emails are going to nine email addresses, please inform us if some start to bounce as the campaign progresses.

 

 

 

 

 

More Information:

- Safe Palm Oil- Friends of the Earth Orangutan Report

Contacts to send your own protest emails and letters:Dr. H. Susilo Bambang YudhoyonoPresident of the Republic of IndonesiaIstana NegaraJl. Medan Merdeka Utara Jakarta Pusat 10010 INDONESIATel: + 62 21 3845627 ext 1003Fax: + 62 21 3457782Email: presidenRepublic of Indonesia Ministry of AgriculturewebmasterdjayawarmanEmbassy of Indonesia2020 Massachusetts Ave. N.W.Washington, D.C. 20036, USAFront Desk - 202 - 775 - 5200; Fax. 202 - 775 - 5365made.mastraehutabaratIndonesian Embassy - UK38 Grosvenor SquareLondon W1K 2HW consularatdagatperindagIndonesian Embassy - Australia8 Darwin AvenueYarralumla, ACT 2600email (of the Section): consularTel: +61-2-6250 8600Fax: +61-2-6273 6017