Chinese Logging Firms Stripping Myanmar's Forests - AFP

[hatrack]

NONGDAO, China (AFP) - In eight weeks the quiet narrow road that hugs Nongdao's sugarcane fields on the way to the ancient jungles of Myanmar will be overrun with Chinese trucks loaded down with illegal timber.

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Each year caravans of Chinese trucks haul tens of thousands of tonnes of Myanmar's tropical trees to China, the world's largest importer of rare timber and a wood manufacturing centre. "Six of ten timber logs chopped in the world's forest are destined for China," said Tamara Stark, a forestry expert for Greenpeace in China, a rapacious pace many fear will soon leave much of Southeast Asia treeless.

After 10 years of intense harvesting, Myanmar's forests have disappeared to such an extent that Chinese loggers from Yunnan province are now struggling to find accessible swathes of forest to cut. "Only a few years ago loggers could travel a couple of days, now they have to travel a least a week into Myanmar to find the forests," said Yang Minggao, general manager of Rongmao Wood Trading Company in nearby Ruili.

The piles of illegally hewed trees, many also from Papau New Guinea and Indonesia, arrive at one of China's 200,000 mills, before being destined for the showrooms of major US and EU retailers as floorboards or furniture.

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http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20071011/sc_afp/chinamyanmarenvironmentlogging_071011192025

[4dsc]

1. US consumerism is killing these forests

without the wasteful US consumer, the Chinese wouldn't be destroying these forests..

Peak oil cannot happen soon enough, IMHO!!

[jojo54]

2. Illegal deforestation has to be addressed just as fervently

as climate change. Without CO2 we are definately screwed!

[AlecBGreen]

3. out of sight out of mind

"I dont support animal cruelty ... my chicken comes from Hillshire farms!"

"I dont buy blood diamonds ... I get mine from Kay!"

"I dont buy illegal wood ... I get my furniture at Wal-Mart!"