Greenpeace today delivered a MORI poll to Environment Minister Michael Meacher showing that 87% of the British public want the government to ban illegal imports of wood from the world's ancient forests. Furthermore 80% want the British Government to pledge funding to a proposed international fund to protect the world's remaining ancient forests.
The UK is currently the top importer within the EU of illegal wood from tropical forests (1). We import plywood from Indonesian and Amazon rainforests, some of which is used as hoardings around building sites then trashed. Many doors and window frames come from the destruction of the forest home of Africa's great apes in the Congo Basin.
The poll is being released as Greenpeace launch Save or Delete - a new campaign to protect the world's remaining ancient forests. To kick off the campaign gorillas and other 'Ancient Forest Messengers' will be roaming London - delivering the results of the poll to politicians, the timber trade and Harrods, who sell furniture made from illegally logged mahogany.
The messengers will also be unveiling billboard posters around London based on a powerful illustration of Jungle Book characters in a devastated jungle. The poster image has been produced for Greenpeace by maverick street artist Banksy - popular in the hip-hop scene for his stencils and graffiti images that portray striking political messages. The posters promote the campaign website saveordelete.com - where the public can take part in an online referendum and download DIY campaign kits.
Ancient forests are home to two-thirds of all species of land-dwelling plants and animals including the great apes. 80% of the world's original ancient forests have already disappeared forever and today we are still losing an area of ancient forest the size of a football pitch every two seconds. If this destruction continues scientists predict that tropical rainforests in Indonesia and West Africa could be wiped out within decades - leading to the extinction of the great apes in our lifetime.
Ten years ago at the Rio Earth Summit the world's governments signed a pledge to protect the world's remaining ancient forests. Yet, since the Summit, an area of ancient forest bigger than France and Spain has disappeared.
This year world governments have the chance to take real action to save the remaining ancient forests. In April they will meet in The Hague for an Ancient Forests Summit (the Convention on Biological Diversity).
Greenpeace is calling on governments to:
- Clean up the international timber trade by stopping the import of illegal and destructively logged timber.
- Create a global ancient forest fund to pay for forest protection.
Further information:
Contact:
Greenpeace UK press office on 0207 865 8255
Notes for editors:
(1) The MORI poll was commissioned by Greenpeace. MORI interviewed a representative quota sample of 1,001 adults aged 16+ across Britain. Interviews were conducted by telephone between 15 - 17 February, 2002.
Summary of results:
Question one - How strongly do you agree or disagree with the following statement:
the Government should ban the import of illegally logged wood from the world's ancient forests
87% strongly agreed or tended to agree
3% neither agreed nor disagreed
8% tended to disagree or strongly disagreed
2% didn't know
Question two - There have been calls for governments to set up an international fund to the tune of $15 billion each year to protect the world's ancient forests. How strongly do you agree or disagree that the British Government should pledge funding to the proposed international fund to protect the world's ancient forests
80% strongly agreed or tended to agree
3% neither agreed nor disagreed
16% tended to disagree or strongly disagreed
1% didn't know
