Avoided deforestation must be part of a global strategy against
climate change, said the president of Conservation International
(CI) on Saturday.
CI President Russell A. Mittermeier made the appeal on the
occasion of "Forest Day" at the ongoing United Nations Climate
Change Conference here.
"We must expedite development and deployment of low emissions
energy technologies in order to achieve necessary cuts in
greenhouse emissions. Only a comprehensive set of strategies can
effectively respond to what may be the greatest environmental
challenge of our time," said Mr. Mittermeier.
The burning and clearing of tropical forests contributes at
least 20 percent of total global greenhouse gas emissions, more
than all the world's cars, trucks, trains and airplanes combined,
he said.
Reducing deforestation, restoring forests, and encouraging good
forest management practices are among the most immediate and most
cost-effective ways to mitigate climate change.
Tropical forest protection offers opportunities for win-win
solutions in both mitigation and adaptation strategies. Protecting
intact rainforest reduces greenhouse gas emissions, and conserves
some of the richest biological diversity on Earth to maintain the
health of ecosystems that provide life-sustaining benefits for
indigenous people and other local populations that are most
vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, he said.
The Conservation International is committed to protecting the
diversity of life on Earth and the ecosystems that sustain this
diversity.
(Xinhua News Agency December 8, 2007)
