Huge fall in illegal rainforest logging

Efforts to tackle illegal destruction of the world's rainforests have been a success, according to a new report that details a significant fall in unauthorised logging. The study, by the U.K.-based international affairs think tank Chatham House and released on Thursday, says illegal logging has dropped by between 50 and 75 per cent across Cameroon, Indonesia and the Brazilian Amazon over the last decade; globally it has dropped by one-fifth since 2002. Sam Lawson, associate fellow at Chatham House and lead author of the report, said: “Up to a billion of the world's poorest people are dependent on forests, and reductions in illegal logging are helping to protect their livelihoods.” The fall in illegal logging, if continued, could save billions of tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions and help the fight against global warming, the report says. Stephen O'Brien, the U.K.'s international development minister, said: “In the world's poorest countries, illegal logging fuels corruption and results in billions of pounds in lost revenue every year. This groundbreaking report sets out the success stories brought about through international efforts in reducing illegal logging, which encourages us all to pursue these efforts further.” In 2000, the U.K., U.S., Japan, France and Netherlands imported more than 20 million cubic metres of illegally logged timber.