http://www.ecoearth.info/rss/alert.xml Curent Cyber Actions at http://www.ecoearth.info/shared/alerts/ Earth Action Network a project of Ecological Internet, Inc. info@ecologicalinternet.org (Dr. Glen Barry) http://www.ecoearth.info/shared/images/eilogo85.gif http://www.ecoearth.info/rss/alert.xml ![CDATA[Sir Michael Somare - the first and current Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea (Eastern half of island Northeast of Australia)- is becoming increasingly despotic and unbalanced, stripping landowners of their customary land rights, and stealing the nation's resources. Illegal logging, mining, natural gas and petroleum projects - all at the expense of the Earth's third largest intact rainforests and some of the world's last healthy fishing grounds - are being illegally rushed through without prior and informed consent of resource owners, to benefit Mr. Somare's family and friends. Further, to avoid a vote of no-confidence, Mr. Somare has again resorted to illegally dissolving parliament - threatening to kill a political opponent that resisted. In recent days Somare's government has again amended PNG's Environmental Act to make it easier for Chinese government owned China Metallurgical Construction (MCC) corporation to dump 100 million tons of untreated mine waste into the pristine oceans of Madang Province, Papua New Guinea - some of the world's last best tuna fishing grounds. These changes were carried out specifically at the behest of the Chinese government's mining agency. This means local landowners have been stripped of land rights and the government seeks to squash their court cases and protests demanding mine tailings not be dumped into the sea. Chinese mining investment in Madang against local wishes can only be described as an invasion of sovereign peoples, and will be resisted at all costs. The situation threatens to needlessly descend into revolutionary violence, as Red China threatens PNG's democracy and freedoms.]] http://www.ecoearth.info/shared/alerts/send.aspx?id=png_ramu_mine http://www.ecoearth.info/shared/alerts/send.aspx?id=png_ramu_mine 12 Aug 2010 11:00:00 PST | | info@ecologicalinternet.org (Dr. Glen Barry) ![CDATA[Situated on the Polish/Belarussian border, the Bialowieza Forest is a priceless relic of lowland European forests, a place where the last fragments of primeval temperate old-growth forest on the Central European lowland have survived [more photos on facebook]. It is home to many species extinct elsewhere including the European Bison, the largest terrestrial mammal of Europe; and also contains lynx, wolves and other threatened wildlife and plants. Yet approximately 83% of the forest remains unprotected. This ancient forest cathedral is an unparalleled living museum, offering Europe and the world a window into the past. In Bialowieza, we can still observe how European temperate forest ecosystems functioned without human interference. The forest's huge old trees -- with spruce as tall as 55 meters, and oaks 40 meters tall -- inspire all generations. This vital part of European and global historical/cultural heritage must not be lost, so we campaign yet again on the issue. The forest had been protected as a royal hunting ground for centuries, and it was only after World War I that large-scale commercial logging began. The Bialowieza National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage site, yet protects only about 17% of the area, while commercial cutting continues in the rest. These 80 years of exploitative timber extraction have had a dramatic effect on the unprotected forests, as the share of old-growth stands has dropped to less than 20%. There is no justifiable explanation for ravaging this invaluable fragment of wilderness for the interest of just one generation. All ancient, primary forest stands will soon be gone, and the last European primeval forest will be only history. The future of Bialowieza Forest lies in the hands of the Polish government which has the legal and financial means to arrest the devastation and to preserve the forest for the future. For many years environmental NGOs, scientists, concerned citizens in Poland and abroad have asked successive Polish governments to protect the forest, asking them to ban cutting of old growth and for enlargement of the Bialowieza National Park to protect the whole forest complex. Until now there has been little success. There has recently been a surge of local protest that John Seed and Rainforest Information Centre have been in communication with, drafting this alert with EI. Now is the last chance to save the natural character and ecosystems of Bialowieza Forest. ]] http://www.ecoearth.info/shared/alerts/send.aspx?id=poland_bialowieza_forest http://www.ecoearth.info/shared/alerts/send.aspx?id=poland_bialowieza_forest 10 Aug 2010 11:00:00 PST | | info@ecologicalinternet.org (Dr. Glen Barry)