27 Nov 2008 - Asunción,
Paraguay—Today, November 20, 2008, by a
unanimous vote the Congress of Paraguay
has extended the “Zero Deforestation Law”,
law number 3139/06. Three commissions—Energy
and Natural Resources, Agrarian Reform,
and the Legislature Commission of the Senate—gave
strong presentations supporting extension
of the law, including the degree of devastation
of the Atlantic Forest, the lack of land
use planning, the benefits that the region
is losing with deforestation (biodiversity
loss, siltation of water courses, pollution
of the Guarani Aquifer, destruction of ancestral
cultures, and the disappearance of family
farms, among others). They also gave emphasis
to the great importance of maintaining what
is left of this much threatened eco-region
because of the danger in losing every thing,
because deforestation can at a certain point
become irreversible.
Until 2004 Paraguay
registered the highest deforestation rate
in the Americas and second in the world.
Nearly 7 million hectares of Atlantic Forest
was lost to slash-and-burn for agricultural
and ranching use in close to four decades.
This changed rapidly with the Land Conversion
Moratorium for the Atlantic Forest of Paraguay,
also called the “Zero Deforestation Law”.
However, this law was scheduled to expire
in December 2008 if the Legislature of Paraguay
did not extend it. Decades of deforestation
and devastation cannot be recovered in just
four years of moratorium.
One of the main focuses
of the senate discussion was also how deforestation
and degradation influence climatic changes
and how much this changes can affect the
agricultural and livestock production of
the region. Moreover, in the accumulated
deforestation that occurred during the last
four decades Paraguay has lost much of its
important timber production, and in fact
is becoming a wood importer.
The Senate also acknowledged
the success of reducing the deforestation
by close to 90% in just four years of moratorium,
and the great support of National and International
Organizations in providing assistance for
the monitoring of the implementation of
this legislation.
Once again the Government
of Paraguay has honored its commitment made
at the CBD COP9 (in Bonn, Germany) and in
the World Congress of the IUCN (in Barcelona,
Spain), to support WWF in its initiative
of “Zero Net Deforestation by 2020”, and
has extended the Zero Deforestation Law
for five more years. The Minister of the
Environment has expressed his satisfaction
in the approval by Congress of this important
law and has committed to work toward the
inclusion of other regions of the country,
such as the Chaco and Pantanal in this Land
Conversion Moratorium legislation.
However there is much
to be done: the WWF network is working with
the Government of Paraguay and local NGOs
to implement financial and legal mechanisms
such as Payments for Environmental Services
(PES) and the Program of Conformance with
the Forest Legislation (CFL), to truly achieve
a Zero Net Deforestation in the Atlantic
Forest in Paraguay.
The WWF local and global
teams working together are making a difference
in this very threatened eco-region.
+ More
European leadership
lacking ahead of global climate talks
25 Nov 2008 - Brussels,
Belgium – Europe will face major embarrassment
at international climate change talks next
week if it fails to live up to its commitment
to tackle global warming, environment and
development groups warned today.
The world is looking
at how high Europe will set the bar at climate
talks in Poznan, Poland, starting on December
1st. Its position will be crucial in determining
the chances of agreeing a global deal consistent
with keeping global warming below 2°C
compared to pre-industrial temperatures,
and preventing the worst impacts of climate
change.
However, the EU’s climate
and energy package, the biggest legislative
effort on climate change in the world to
date, is in danger of being watered down
by some EU countries which are more interested
in protecting short-term national industrial
interests.
Poland, which will be at the centre of the
world stage in December as the host of the
UN climate change talks, is one of the Member
States, along with Germany and others, being
most obstructive to the negotiations on
a strong deal.
Climate Action Network
Europe, Friends of the Earth Europe, Greenpeace,
Oxfam and WWF said: “Now is the time for
Europe to show real leadership on climate
change. The importance of the EU climate
and energy package cannot be underestimated
– it is the test of whether Europe will
live up to its rhetoric and set the standard
for the rest of the world. Action in Europe
will be crucial to determining tomorrow’s
global temperatures and as a consequence,
the future for the planet and human development.
“If Member States such
as Poland and Italy are allowed to weaken
the climate package the EU’s international
credibility will be damaged.”
The groups point to
major sticking points in negotiations on
the climate and energy package, which will
determine the EU’s credibility on the international
stage.
Climate Action Network
Europe, Friends of the Earth Europe, Greenpeace,
Oxfam and WWF call on the EU to follow scientific
advice and cut its emissions by at least
30% domestically; make polluting industries
pay for their emissions and not allow them
to buy their way out of reducing their carbon
footprint by sponsoring questionable projects
in the developing world; commit to the financial
resources that are needed to support developing
countries’ future efforts as part of the
next global climate deal, and make real
progress during the climate negotiations
in Poznan to ensure that a deal can be reached
in Copenhagen in December 2009.
The United Nations Climate
Change Conference (COP14) in Poznan is a
crucial milestone in negotiations for a
global agreement to reduce greenhouse gas
emissions beyond 2012.
Delia Villagrasa, Senior Advisor, WWF European
Policy Office.
