Hunters are decimating species in the Uzungwa Scarp Forest Reserve, a part of the Eastern Arc Mountains in Southern Tanzania, according to a new report compiled by international and Tanzanian conservationists. Incorporating three research projects, the report finds that bushmeat hunting in conjunction with forest degradation imperils the ecology of the protected area.

"Some species in this region are on the brink of extinction from one of their last remaining strongholds, especially the Udzungwa red colobus, a monkey species found only in these mountains and nowhere else in the world," said Arafat Mtui, Udzungwa Ecological Monitoring Center coordinator, in a press release.

http://news.mongabay.com/2011/0206-hance_udzungwa.html

06/02/2011
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Hunters are decimating species in the Uzungwa Scarp Forest Reserve, a part of the Eastern Arc Mountains in Southern Tanzania, according to a new report compiled by international and Tanzanian conservationists. Incorporating three research projects, the report finds that bushmeat hunting in conjunction with forest degradation imperils the ecology of the protected area.

"Some species in this region are on the brink of extinction from one of their last remaining strongholds, especially the Udzungwa red colobus, a monkey species found only in these mountains and nowhere else in the world," said Arafat Mtui, Udzungwa Ecological Monitoring Center coordinator, in a press release.

http://news.mongabay.com/2011/0206-hance_udzungwa.html

06/02/2011
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Vale, a Brazilian mining giant, will buy palm oil producer Biopalma da Amazonia SA Reflorestamento Industria & Comercio, reports Bloomberg.

The deal, valued at $173.5 million, will enable the mining company to run more of its operations on palm oil biodiesel.

Vale began its palm oil push in 2009 when it formed a partnership with Biopalma. At the time Vale said the deal would save $150 million in fuel costs starting in 2014, with palm oil biodiesel replacing up to 20 percent of diesel consumption in the company's northern operations.

http://news.mongabay.com/2011/0202-vale_biopalma.html

03/02/2011
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Peatlands and rainforests in Malaysia's Sarawak state on the island of Borneo are being rapidly destroyed for oil palm plantations, according to new studies by environmental group Wetlands International and remote sensing institute Sarvision.

The analysis shows that more than one third (353,000 hectares or 872,000 acres) of Sarawak's peatswamp forests and ten percent of the state's rainforests were cleared between 2005 and 2010. About 65 percent of the area was converted for oil palm, which is replacing logging as timber stocks have been exhausted by unsustainable harvesting practices.

http://news.mongabay.com/2011/0201-sarawak_palm_oil_vs_peat.html

01/02/2011
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An increasing part of Malaysia's palm oil is produced at the account of huge areas of tropical peatswamp forests. Especially in the Malaysian state of Sarawak, expansion of oil palm plantations may lead to the complete loss of these vast, unique forests by the end of this decade. This is shown by new figures from Wetlands International and Sarvision.

01/02/2011
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One Ranger has been killed and one critically injured in a second major FDLR Rwandan militia attack in less than a week in Virunga National Park in DR Congo. Ranger Muhindo Mburungani was hit in the chest and died instantly when their unit intercepted a group of FDLR looting a public transport minibus on the Kabasha escarpment to the west of the park yesterday evening. The driver was shot through the eye, arm, and chest and is in critical condition at Kayna hospital.

Both were part of a civilian protection unit positioned along the road. The attackers have not been apprehended.

31/01/2011
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