Deforestation

Expressed 'deep disappointment' at EU's unilateral green regulations: Goyal

Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday expressed India's "deep disappointment" with the European Union's "unilateral" green economy regulations, stating they are unfair and violate the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities". Under the proposed EUDR, operators or traders placing specified commodities on the EU market or exporting them must prove their products do not come from recently deforested land or contribute to forest degradation. Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) are tariffs that will apply on energy-intensive goods imported into the European Union (EU). India has concerns that the CBAM could result in higher tariffs on imports of carbon-intensive goods like cement, aluminium, iron, and steel from India, acting as a unilateral trade barrier. Addressing a press conference here, the commerce and industry minister said he raised the issue with his French counterpart during talks held a day earlier. On Wednesday, Goyal held discussions with Sophie ...

Deforestation in Brazil's Amazon drops by nearly 31% compared to last year

Forest loss in Brazil's Amazon dropped by 30.6% compared to the previous year, officials said Wednesday, the lowest level of destruction in nine years. In a 12-month span, the Amazon rainforest lost 6,288 square kilometers (2,428 square miles), roughly the size of the U.S. state of Delaware. The results, announced in Brazils presidential palace, sharply contrast with President Luiz Incio Lula da Silva's predecessor, far-right leader Jair Bolsonaro, who prioritized agribusiness expansion over forest protection and weakened environmental agencies. Deforestation hit a 15-year high during his term. Deforestation in Brazil's vast savannah, known as the Cerrado, decreased by 25.7%, the first decline in five years. The area destroyed reached 8,174 square kilometers (3,156 square miles). Located in central Brazil, it is the world's most biodiverse savannah but has fewer legal protections than the Amazon. Despite the success in curbing Amazon deforestation, Lula's government has been ...

'Not aware of need for court approval': Delhi LG tells SC on tree felling

On October 16, the Supreme Court gave Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena an October 22 deadline to take action against DDA officials for the illegal felling of trees

Countries, firms, trade officials urge EU to rethink deforestation rules

A growing number of governments, international trade organizations and businesses are urging the European Union to reconsider a deforestation regulation set to take effect in December. Critics of the regulation say it will discriminate against countries with forest resources and hurt their exports. Supporters of the EU Deforestation Regulation, or EUDR for short, say it will help combat forest degradation on a global scale. Several commodity associations have said they support the objectives of the regulation but that gaps in its implementation could harm their businesses. Environmental organizations have voiced support, saying the EUDR will help slow global deforestation, which is the second-biggest source of carbon emissions after fossil fuels. Here's a look at the EU Deforestation Regulation: What is the EUDR and what products is it expected to impact? Starting on Dec. 30, the EU Deforestation Regulation will outlaw the sale of forest-derived products within the 27-nation bloc

Deforestation in Amazon forest at its lowest level since 2016: Brazil govt

Deforestation in Brazil's Amazon rainforest slowed by nearly half compared to the year before, according to government satellite data released Wednesday. It's the largest reduction since 2016, when officials began using the current method of measurement. In the past 12 months, the Amazon rainforest lost 4,300 square kilometers (1,700 square miles), an area roughly the size of Rhode Island. That's a nearly 46% decrease compared to the previous period. Brazil's deforestation surveillance year runs from August 1 to July 30. Still, much remains to be done to end the destruction and the month of July showed a 33% increase in tree cutting over July 2023. A strike by officials at federal environmental agencies contributed to this surge, said Joo Paulo Capobianco, executive secretary for the Environment Ministry, during a press conference in Braslia. The figures are preliminary and come from the Deter satellite sytem, managed by the National Institute for Space Research and used by ...

India among top 3 countries in most significant forest area gains: FAO

India gained 2,66,000 hectares of forest area annually from 2010 to 2020, securing the third spot among the top 10 countries with the most significant forest area gains during this period, according to a new report by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). The report, released on Monday, said that China led the world with the maximum forest area gain of 1,937,000 hectares, followed by Australia with 4,46,000 hectares, and then India. Other countries in the top 10 include Chile, Vietnam, Turkey, the United States, France, Italy and Romania. The UN agency praised India for its efforts in restoring degraded lands and expanding agroforestry through innovative approaches. This includes the development of a new national policy aimed at better supporting agroforestry in the country. The report highlighted a significant reduction in deforestation in some countries. For example, Indonesia saw an 8.4 per cent decline in deforestation from 2021 to 2022, while Brazil's Amazon experienced

International Day of Forests 2024: All about importance of greenery in life

World Forest Day 2024 is marked internationally on 21 March 2024. It intends to bring issues to light of the value of forests and their various advantages in our society

Brazil's Amazon Summit ends with roadmap to protect world's rainforests

Brazil's Amazon Summit closed on Wednesday with a roadmap to protect tropical rainforests that was welcomed as an important step in countering climate change, but without the concrete commitments sought by some environmentalists to end deforestation. Leaders and ministers from eight Amazon nations signed a declaration Tuesday in Belem, Brazil, that laid out plans to drive economic development in their countries while preventing the Amazon's ongoing demise from reaching a point of no return. Several environmental groups described the declaration as a compilation of good intentions with little in the way of measurable goals and timeframes. However, it was lauded by others, and the Amazon's umbrella organization of Indigenous groups celebrated the inclusion of two of its main demands. It is significant that the leaders of the countries of the region have listened to the science and understood the call of society: the Amazon is in danger, and we do not have much time to act, the ...

GTRI wants India to prep exporters to deal with EU deforestation compliance

Regulation will hit agri exports of $1.3 bn to the bloc: Think tank

India agri-based sector to get opportunities amid EU's deforestation norms

The European Union's (EU) stringent deforestation regulation would provide new opportunities for domestic agro-based industry players, as against their global competitors, as forest cover in India is increasing significantly, an official said. While several countries in Latin America and Africa have cleared their forests for agricultural purposes, India's forest cover is increasing and there is no practice here in the country to cut forest for agri activities. The government official said these regulations provide an opportunity for "our industry because our forest cover has increased, our reserve forest is strong and it is increasing. "Our forest land is different from agri land. We can demonstrate these facts to the EU and converge to some kind of understanding on this regulation". According to a report by think tank Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), India's exports of products like coffee, leather hides and paperboard worth USD 1.3 billion annually to the European Union w

Govt fears European Union's draft due diligence law may hit small biz

European Union's law is still at the initial draft stage

Felling of trees should be last resort in city gasping for breath: Delhi HC

Felling of trees should be the last resort in a city gasping for breath, the Delhi High Court has said and stayed the clearing of a green patch of land in Vasant Kunj for a construction project. A vacation bench of Justice Jasmeet Singh observed the land has virtually become a bio-diversity park with beautiful trees as well as wildlife and birds. If any other alternative site is available for the complex, it must be looked at, the judge stated. "Till the next date of hearing, the respondents are restrained from clearing of land and felling of trees on the plot comprised in Sector A Pockets B&C, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi," said the court in an order passed on June 14. "In a city gasping for breath, I am of the view that felling of trees should be the last resort. In case, any other alternative site is available, the same must be looked at," the court said. The petitioner, a residents' welfare society in the area, has sought directions to the private builders as well as the Delhi ...

Exports to EU worth $1.3 bn to be impacted by deforestation rule: GTRI

India's exports of products like coffee, leather hides and paperboard worth USD 1.3 billion annually to the European Union will get impacted due to the deforestation regulation adopted by the EU earlier this week, a report by economic think tank GTRI said on Thursday. Within three weeks of introducing the carbon border tax, the European Union Council on May 16 adopted the European Union Deforestation-Free Products Regulation (EU-DR). The Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said that the EU-DR appears to prioritise protecting its own agricultural sector and promoting exports, making imports more difficult as it is a trade barrier disguised as a green measure. The regulation covers cattle, buffalo, the meat of bovine animals, preparations, Oil cake, soya beans, palm oil, cocoa bean, powder, chocolate, coffee, leather hide, skin, paper, paperboard, wood, wood articles, wood pulp, boards and wood furniture. The exporters now have to ensure that these products have been grown on lan

European Union adopts law banning products which fuel deforestation

The 27 European Union countries have formally adopted new rules that should help the bloc reduce its contribution to global deforestation by regulating the trade in a series of goods. Under the legislation, companies trading palm oil, cattle, wood, coffee, cocoa, rubber and soy will need to verify that the goods they sell in the EU have not led to deforestation and forest degradation anywhere in the world since 2021. The regulation also covers derived products such as chocolate or printed paper. Forests are an important natural means of removing greenhouse gas emissions from the atmosphere, since plants absorb carbon dioxide when they grow. According to the World Resource Institute, a forest area the size of 10 soccer pitches disappears in the world every minute and the EU says that without the new regulation it could be responsible for the loss of 248,000 hectares of deforestation per year a surface almost as large as member country Luxembourg. The law will force companies to sh

Ending deforestation likely to cost more than $130 billion a year: Report

It would likely cost more than $130 billion a year to end deforestation by the end of this decade, according to a report from a group of financiers, energy industry executives and academics

SC fines Mumbai Metro but allows to remove 177 trees from Aarey forest

Observing that the Mumbai Metro has made an attempt to overreach the court's jurisdiction, the Supreme Court on Monday directed it to pay Rs 10 lakh fine within two weeks for felling of trees in Aarey forest beyond permission. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices P S Narasimha and J B Pardiwala said it was improper on Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Limited's (MMRCL) part to move the tree authority for felling of any trees in excess of 84. The top court, however, permitted the company to remove 177 trees from Aarey forest, saying a stay on tree felling would lead to the public project being brought to a standstill which is not desirable. "MMRCL within a period of two weeks should provide an amount of 10 lakh to the conservator of forests. The conservator shall ensure that all afforestation which has been directed is completed," the bench said. "We request the director of IIT Bombay to depute a team for the purpose of verifying compliance. A report should be .

Amazon rainforest deteriorating too fast for species, climate to adapt

Already, 17% of the rainforest has been impacted by disturbances like logging, fires and road expansion, and 14% of it has been replaced with pasture or cropland

HC allows felling of 20,000 trees for Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project

The Bombay High Court on Friday permitted the National High Speed Rail Corporation (NHSRCL) to cut around 20,000 mangrove trees in the city and neighbouring districts of Palghar and Thane for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project. A division bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Abhay Ahuja allowed the plea filed by the NHSRCL seeking permission to cut the mangrove trees. As per a 2018 order of the high court, there exists a "total freeze" on the destruction of mangroves across the state and permission has to be sought from the high court each time an authority wishes to fell mangroves for any public project. As per the said order, a 50 m buffer zone must be created around the area that hosts the mangroves and no construction activity or dumping of debris can be permitted within this buffer zone. In its petition filed in 2020, the NHSRCL had assured the court it would plant five times the total mangrove trees that were earlier proposed to be felled and the number wo

SC allows Mumbai Metro to pursue application to cut 84 trees in Aarey

Case pertains to construction of Metro car shed on forest land in Aarey which adjoins Sanjay Gandhi National Park; next hearing likely in Feb 2023

Area under moderately dense mangroves fell in 10 years, shows data

Overall mangrove cover increased between 2011 and 2021