<
https://theconversation.com/cut-less-leave-longer-decades-of-data-show-we-are-over-exploiting-tropical-rainforests-167426>
"Tropical rainforests currently cover 1070 million hectares of the world’s
surface. More than 90% of them are located in three regions: Central Africa, in
the Congo Basin; South America, mostly in the Amazon; and in Southeast Asia, in
Indonesia, Malaysia and Papua New Guinea.
It is estimated that 400 million hectares of these forests are currently given
over to timber production. But our research over many decades shows the rules
that govern timber harvesting in tropical forest – currently based on logging
intensity and cutting cycle – do not allow for the long-term recovery of the
timber volume being harvested from these ecosystems.
These observations question the very foundations of the so-called “sustainable
management” of these forests, and indicates that we will see further
degradation of the planet’s last timber-producing tropical rainforests. It is
therefore urgent that we seek out new sources of timber. Natural forests alone
will not be able to meet current and future demand.
The principles of tropical silviculture – the management of forests to meet the
needs of diverse groups and industries – must also be completely revised."
Cheers,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
