permaculture

[Marimike6@cs.com]

I usually don't send things like this along. But I think this one is uniquely 
important. I hope no one is offended by this use of the group resource.

ACTION ALERT FORWARD WIDELY!

Oil Palm Threatens Indonesia's Rainforests and Orangutans

By Rainforest Portal, project of Ecological Internet, Inc. 
http://www.rainforestportal.org/
February 20, 2006

TAKE ACTION
Chinese funded development a ploy to access rainforest timbers, 
will devastate Borneo's biodiversity and largest remaining wild 
orangutan population

http://www.rainforestportal.org/alerts/send.asp?id=indonesia

Indonesia plans to cut a 2,000 kilometer long, five kilometer 
wide swathe through one of the world's largest remaining areas 
of pristine rainforest to create a massive oil palm plantation. 
The project would destroy two million hectares of ancient 
rainforest in Kalimantan, traversing almost the entire border 
with Malaysia, and slicing through three national parks. These 
remote rainforests on the island of Borneo are home to countless 
species of rare birds, plants and mammals including the largest 
remaining wild orangutan population. This Chinese-funded 
"agricultural development" is almost certainly a thinly veiled 
ruse to access timber. Indonesia has huge land areas of 
abandoned, unproductive palm oil plantations and degraded forest 
areas that would be suitable for oil palm development. Palm oil 
plantations - which completely clear the rainforests and are 
biologically depauperate - are the number one enemy of 
orangutans. Orangutans need vast areas of interconnected forest 
to survive, and this ill-conceived project would speed up their 
extinction. Let the Indonesian President know he must cancel the 
Kalimantan project, and that new oil palm plantations should be 
built only in previously cleared and unused areas. Note your 
protest emails are going to nine addresses, please inform us if 
some start to bounce. Please take action now at 
http://www.rainforestportal.org/alerts/send.asp?id=indonesia