Bonn climate change talks start with Australia hiding emissions from logging

The Wilderness Society Inc
Media Release
1 June 2010

Australian Government negotiators at the United Nation's climate change talks in Bonn are colluding with other developed countries to hide almost 400 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions each year from forest logging, The Wilderness Society revealed today.

The Bonn climate change talks are the first opportunity since the failed Copenhagen conference in December to achieve a global agreement on emissions reduction.

Australia and other developed countries have started the Bonn talks by attempting to exploit a loophole that would allow them to continue to increase emissions from forest logging for several years and not have to account for it or pay any penalty, lead negotiator for The Wilderness Society Peg Putt said.

"Just when we need incentives to protect forests to reduce emissions, a draft decision for developed countries that ignores emissions from forest logging is on the table and Australia is part of the problem."

The loophole would work by allowing developed countries to continue increasing their logging emissions for several years without any penalty and only then measure any emission reduction commitments against this future level, effectively hiding logging emissions.

"The vital decision at Bonn on how to treat land and forests will have a big impact on how the government handles logging in Australia, and whether our native forests are protected so that they can continue to absorb and store carbon emissions," Ms Putt said.

"There is serious concern about the rules now being negotiated at Bonn for forestry in Australia and other developed countries that would effectively hide emissions of about 400 megatons each year. This would further weaken provisions under the Kyoto Protocol.

Australia can protect native forests and achieve rapid and substantial reductions of greenhouse gas emissions. Ms Putt said wood supply can be maintained from the large established plantation estate and this would help to fill the policy vacuum created by the shelving of the CPRS.

"Our native forests in south-eastern Australia are not only havens for wildlife and safeguard sources of drinking water, but are also some of the most carbon dense in the world.

"Australia has a big opportunity to make its native forests part of the climate solution, particularly in light of the abandonment of the CPRS and the collapse of Tasmanian native forest-based export woodchip markets due to market pressure for forest protection."