Africa's tropical forests are threatened by a palm oil
bonanza that has already razed millions of old-growth hectares in Southeast
Asia, Greenpeace France warned. The NGO
called on European palm and rubber plantation giant Socfin, which controls vast
tracts of tropical land in more than half-a-dozen African nations, to join
other multinationals in adopted so-called "zero deforestation"
policies. So far, Socfin—majority controlled by Belgian businessman Hubert
Fabri, with French billionaire Vincent Bollore holding 38.8 percent of the
company's shares—have failed to make a commitment.
The core provision of
a zero deforestation policy is to identify and protect so-called "high
carbon stock" areas. These are forest regions that store huge quantities
of carbon dioxide in living wood mass. Once it is cut down and burned, CO2 is
released into the atmosphere, contributing to climate change. Another key
provision is the protection of peatlands which—when drained to make way for a
plantation—also spew CO2 into the air. Zero deforestation likewise includes
guarantees that local populations are fairly compensated for lost land, and not
otherwise adversely affected.
Palm oil, soy, paper pulp, and beef drive nearly
three-quarters of deforestation in tropical areas, according to studies. Deforestation
from all sources is responsible for 12 percent of the greenhouse gases driving
global warming. Clear-cutting and burning to make way for palm oil plantations
causes health-wrecking air pollution, exacerbates climate change, and destroys
some of the planet's richest "hotspots" for biodiversity. The
transformation of great swathes of rainforest to monoculture farming is also a
mixed blessing for local populations, providing a source of low-wage employment
but often displacing indigenous peoples and disrupting established livelihoods.
Currently, only a small percentage of palm oil comes from
Africa, but Socfin operates numerous plantations there with others in the
pipeline. "Africa has become the new frontier for palm oil, the new
battleground of oil palm and rubber tree companies," the Greenpeace report
said.
The company has sought a 150 million euro ($165 million)
loan via the International Finance Corporation (IFC), an entity of the World
Bank, to finance certification under environmental norms upheld by the IFC. But
Socfin does not meet even these modest standards—described by Greenpeace as
"insufficient to prevent deforestation"—according to the IFC, which
signalled "major gaps" between the palm and rubber giant's operations
and "good international industry practice." Greenpeace said "The
IFC must urgently suspend the ongoing corporate loan procedure and condition
the granting of this loan on the company's publication of a credible zero
deforestation commitment."
Socfin currently has 50,000 hectares (124,000 acres) in
rubber plantations, and 80,000 hectares (198,000 acres) in palm oil trees in
Africa. The forests in the Congo basin cover some 200 million hectares (500
million acres) across six countries, and are home to more than 500 species of
mammals, 400 reptiles and thousands of plants. Between 1990 and 2010, at least
3.5 million hectares of natural forests were converted into palm oil
plantations, mainly in Southeast Asia.
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