Timber

Large-scale, intensively-managed and even-aged tree monocultures for timber production have been expanding onto communities’ fertile lands. They have destroyed forests and grasslands, especially in Latin America, Asia, and East and Southern Africa. The species used are exotic and fast-growing. They include varieties of eucalyptus, pine and teak trees.

Bulletin articles 22 August 2024

Argentina: The community fight against contamination from sawmills

The Argentine province of Corrientes has the largest area of tree plantations in the country. 80% of the timber from these plantations goes to sawmills, where mountains of sawdust are regularly burned, causing serious health problems for neighboring communities. The local organization, Guardians of Y'vera, conducted a community health survey to highlight the problem, demand the relocation of these mills, and denounce the impacts of the forestry model.

Other information 22 August 2024

Argentina: Justice demanded for Arauco's eviction of peasant families

On July 5, 2024, three peasant families were violently evicted in Paraje San Lorenzo 2, in the municipality of Wanda, in the Argentine province of Misiones. The provincial police carried out the eviction, in collaboration with the multinational company, Arauco. During the operation, the police destroyed the ten-hectare farm which had been the families' livelihood for a decade.

Other information 25 October 2023

Papua: The Moi Tribe Opposing Timber Corporate Giants

Alamindo Lestari Sejahtera (ALS) Group, that owns and controls at least three timber companies and industries in Papua, is expanding the business of timber forest products exploitation in the customary area of the Moi Tribe through a company called PT Hutan Hijau Papua Barat (HHPB).

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Bulletin articles 22 July 2023

Monoculture Tree Plantations, Poverty and False Solutions: Harvard's Legacy in Argentina

After 14 years of profiting from tree plantations—and at the cost of destroying wetlands and communities—the Harvard Management Company, one of the largest investment funds, sold 88,000 hectares in Corrientes to Argentina's largest electric power company, Central Puerto, which also wants to produce wood, biomass energy and carbon offsets.

Bulletin articles 16 June 2022

Reclaiming land in Misiones, Argentina: A Fight for Social Justice and a Dignified Life

The Independent Producers of Piray (PIP) in Misiones, Argentina was formed in 2005 to stop the advance of multinational Arauco’s pine tree monocultures and reclaim the land. WRM spoke with Miriam Samudio, a key member of the PIP family, to reflect on the process of the struggle and the lessons learned.

Bulletin articles 16 June 2022

Expansion of Pulp and Paper Companies APP and APRIL in Indonesia: More Deforestation and Violence

More than 10 million hectares in Indonesia are controlled by the pulp and paper industry, mainly by two giant corporations: APP and APRIL. Despite the companies’ commitments to protect forests and peatland, both keep being associated with deforestation, forest fires and to a business model of violence, criminalization and dispossession of forest communities. (Available in Bahasa Indonesia)

Bulletin articles 4 January 2022

Mega Pine Plantations in the Argentinian Patagonia: Territorial Invasion, Fires And Water Scarcity

The Argentinian government continues to subsidize industrial tree plantations, now as a policy against climate change as well. From dispossession and land appropriation, to deforestation and more forest fires, pine trees are devastating territories and communities.

Bulletin articles 14 January 2021

Indonesia: Legalizing Crimes Under the Slogan of “Creating Jobs”

The government of Indonesia endorsed the criticized Omnibus Law by saying that it is “crucial to attract investment and ultimately create jobs.” The Law is a direct attack on the territories and communities resisting the increasing destruction that has been ongoing for decades in Indonesia. (Available in Indonesian).