Amazon timber shipment blocked in France

Posted by jamie - 18 March 2008 at 7:12pm - Comments

Greenpeace volunteers boarding the Galina III

Boarding the Galina III yesterday © Greenpeace/Karl Joseph

Yesterday afternoon, the crew of one of our ships - the Arctic Sunrise - swung into action in the French port of Caen. Their mission: to prevent a shipment of Amazon timber, acquired from companies linked to illegal logging activities, from entering the EU. And after nearly 24 hours, they're still going strong.

The timber is aboard the Galina III and, as it tried to enter the port, five Greenpeace volunteers (including a group from the UK) climbed aboard where they attached themselves to two of the ship's cranes. Since then, the Galina has been unable to dock to unload its cargo, a mixture of timber species with wonderfully exotic names: amarelao, macaranduba, ipe, garapeira, cumaru and jarana to name a few. And as I write, the team on the cranes is still holding out.

This shipment is just the tip of the iceberg, though. It's estimated that between 63 and 80 per cent of timber from the Brazilian Amazon is illegally logged, and this is contributing to the rising rates of deforestation in the region, not to mention Brazil's massive CO2 emissions (the fourth highest on the planet). And of course, as we've exposed time and time and time again, the EU imports huge amounts of timber from illegal and destructive sources each year.

Watch the slideshow below to find out how it gets here.

What's the answer? Better forest protection and management in the Amazon for one thing, and tough legislation in the EU to stop the dodgy lumber being sold in the market place. Following years of campaigning, the EU Commission is finally expected to publish a proposal for a potential law on timber products in May. We're hoping this proposal will be a tough one but there a lot of hurdles before it might one day become binding.

We - including the guys currently on top of those cranes - want the EU to get this legislation right and make sure that all timber entering the union does eventually come from legal and well-managed sources. Fingers crossed.

Update, 19 March: After a 24-hour occupation, last night our voluinteers left the ship's cranes and ended the action. And I'm also happy to say that the French government has promised to support new EU laws regulating timber imports.

Article tagged as: amazon, brazil, EU, FLEGT, forests, illegal timber, south america
  • share
Comments Commenting is now closed

great job guys!!! am impressed...

By lj - 19 March 2008 at 4:50pm

thanks you

By th5optpo192 - 20 March 2008 at 10:07am

I fail to see what is so impressive about this little stunt. Greenpeace allowed the trees to be cut down, Greenpeace then allowed the trees to be transported thousands of miles across the water and then chose to stop the trees being unloaded. I would have been much more impressed if you'd stopped the trees being cut down at all, I suppose that would have been a bit too risky though wouldn't it and of course it wouldn't have added quite so much to the infamy.

By Gandalf - 22 March 2008 at 10:20am

'Gandalf' has a good point here. If you really want to make a difference then the trees should have been prevented from being chopped down in the first place. Your fighting a losing battle after the thing you wanted to save is already dead. It's like campaigning against the euthanasia of a particular person after they have already died.
On the other hand, if these volunteers can make people see that what they have done is wrong then it may prevent more trees being killed in the future.
However I believe there will be a much greater chance of success if the problem is addressed at its roots.

By Georgina3339 - 22 March 2008 at 3:06pm

Dear Gandalf and Georgina, what was so impressive about this stunt is that it persuaded the French government to support new European legislation regulating timber imports, thereby protecting infinitely more trees than Greenpeace could preserve by patroling the forests ourselves. Had we intervened at the start of the chain of custody, we would have been unable to collect all the evidence necessary to prove French involvement.
graham, gpuk

By graham - 25 March 2008 at 11:44am

What a wonderful result; achieved in the most admirable way. Hats off to you all.
Holly

By herbalholly - 25 March 2008 at 1:12pm

Hey Gandalf and Georgina

Perhaps you should get actively involved. So easy to comment from the sidelines - I'd love to see you 80m up a ships crane - Greenpeace probably do more than any other organisation to highlight and address criminal acts like illegal logging. Protest movements rely on brave volunteers who are prepared to risk their liberty and their careers. For you to deride their actions, however imperfect you may feel these actions to be, says a lot more about you than it does about GreenPeace and their volunteers or the issues that they (not you) are seeking to address.

Chris

By christophe - 25 March 2008 at 2:41pm

Wicked!!! No more timber movement for a while. Hope the french gov might realise just how they are destroying the planet!!!!

Go Greenpeace!! keep up with the good work!!

By green geek - 26 March 2008 at 12:26pm

But Greenpeace still allowed the trees to be cut down in the first place they then allowed the ship to travel thousands of miles to prove a point and get a bit of publicity. If anybody thinks that what has happened is going to change anything then you must be a bit on the stupid side. As already said the practice is illegal so why is it done, for MONEY. Do you really think that those people are going to stop chopping down a few trees just because Greenpeace block one of the ships? Not a chance.
And no I won't be climbing 80m up a ships crane or anything else because I am not stupid enough to put myself and others in the sort of danger that the Greenpeace Glory Hunters seem to thrive on.

By Gandalf - 26 March 2008 at 3:01pm

Mr GANDALF..... You are absolutely right this IS all about money bu it is also about pulbic opinion and business , as in the case of an illegal shipment blockaded in similar 'stunt' a couple of years back, where a cargo of ancient timber off cuts that were destined to be pulped for the production of toilet paper and company magazines!!! one of which was an Ikea publication. Guess what....they immediately withdrew their MONEY when they discovered what was happening..Can you see how this works MR GANDALF???
And you are obviously not aware of trhe tireless work of many brave people working in the field risking thier lives on a daily basis to try and prevent these devastating crimes from being committed! And untill you have looked into the eyes of people who have lost homes husbands and brothers to the illegal timber cartels you are in no way qualified to make silly comments from the side lines! Think about it Gandalf get on board we all have our part to play!!!
WELL DONE GLORY HUNTERS More press coverage the better!!!!!

By damianbadger - 26 March 2008 at 7:01pm

And if the shipment had been bound for China would Greenpeace have been there. No way. We all know that France is pretty much a safe haven for Greenpeace these days.
Still if that's one country not now accepting the stuff there's only a few thousand more to go.
The point still stands that Greenpeace allowed the trees to be cut down and then shipped thousands of miles before they did anything. I don't think that's such a silly comment, or perhaps you could explain how it's a silly comment.

By Gandalf - 26 March 2008 at 7:19pm

If you think that going to the logging sites and trying to stop them chopping down trees is the way to do it then maybe you should give it a try! But then again you are not prepared to risk your soft life for the good of the planet and that is where you are so very different from the courageous volunteers who daily risk all the have to make a difference in this world. My son was one of those Glory hunters up that crane! I am immensely proud of him and all the other volunteers who use their passion for changing this world to actually do something about it rather than sitting around complaining. Greenpeace are not responsible for those trees being cut down, we are, every time we buy something without questioning where it came from and how it was made. Just look at the shops full of stuff that most of us don't need that has been made by raping our beautiful planet and exploiting people who were not "lucky" enough to have been born in the west!

By joveggie - 26 March 2008 at 9:03pm

My soft life?? And what soft life would that be then. As you know nothing at all about me then I don't really see how you can comment on my life. Interesting to note that you are proud of your son for committing crimes.
It is also interesting to note that the so called eco warriors think that they are right and nobody else's point of view matters, why is that?
The point STILL stands. Greenpeace let them cut the trees down and then allowed a ship to sail thousands of miles before they did anything about it.

By Gandalf - 26 March 2008 at 9:54pm

If we had a lot more volunteers, we could guard every square inch of rainforest left on the planet, but somehow I don't think that's going to happen.

We are also tackling the illegal logging problem at source: our campaigners in the Amazon are doing amazing work in often dangerous situations, as are teams in South East Asia and central Africa. And no, there haven't been any actions like this in China (the political situation there makes it a bit more tricky than on this side of the world) but as Chinese timber mills are an important link in the illegal timber chain, we're there as well.

But as others have pointed out, there's a problem at our end as well and the object of this action was to get some traction going on legislation to cut demand in Europe.

web editor
gpuk

By jamie - 27 March 2008 at 11:24am

Hey Gandalf - I have to say that "Greenpeace let them cut the trees down" - strikes me as a particularly stupid comment. Do you honestly reckon it's Greenpeace's fault that big corporations and governments conspire to asset-strip the natural world's resources? Fantastic logic, akin to "kill the messenger" - the bearer of bad news is reponsible for it.

Except you don't honestly believe that, do you? You couldn't - no one could be so dumb. So you're just an industry apologist and wind up merchant, be honest about it.

By slowdazzle - 28 March 2008 at 11:54am

great job guys!!! am impressed...

By lj - 19 March 2008 at 4:50pm

thanks you

By th5optpo192 - 20 March 2008 at 10:07am

I fail to see what is so impressive about this little stunt. Greenpeace allowed the trees to be cut down, Greenpeace then allowed the trees to be transported thousands of miles across the water and then chose to stop the trees being unloaded. I would have been much more impressed if you'd stopped the trees being cut down at all, I suppose that would have been a bit too risky though wouldn't it and of course it wouldn't have added quite so much to the infamy.

By Gandalf - 22 March 2008 at 10:20am

'Gandalf' has a good point here. If you really want to make a difference then the trees should have been prevented from being chopped down in the first place. Your fighting a losing battle after the thing you wanted to save is already dead. It's like campaigning against the euthanasia of a particular person after they have already died. On the other hand, if these volunteers can make people see that what they have done is wrong then it may prevent more trees being killed in the future. However I believe there will be a much greater chance of success if the problem is addressed at its roots.

By Georgina3339 - 22 March 2008 at 3:06pm

Dear Gandalf and Georgina, what was so impressive about this stunt is that it persuaded the French government to support new European legislation regulating timber imports, thereby protecting infinitely more trees than Greenpeace could preserve by patroling the forests ourselves. Had we intervened at the start of the chain of custody, we would have been unable to collect all the evidence necessary to prove French involvement. graham, gpuk

By graham - 25 March 2008 at 11:44am

What a wonderful result; achieved in the most admirable way. Hats off to you all. Holly

By herbalholly - 25 March 2008 at 1:12pm

Hey Gandalf and Georgina Perhaps you should get actively involved. So easy to comment from the sidelines - I'd love to see you 80m up a ships crane - Greenpeace probably do more than any other organisation to highlight and address criminal acts like illegal logging. Protest movements rely on brave volunteers who are prepared to risk their liberty and their careers. For you to deride their actions, however imperfect you may feel these actions to be, says a lot more about you than it does about GreenPeace and their volunteers or the issues that they (not you) are seeking to address. Chris

By christophe - 25 March 2008 at 2:41pm

Wicked!!! No more timber movement for a while. Hope the french gov might realise just how they are destroying the planet!!!! Go Greenpeace!! keep up with the good work!!

By green geek - 26 March 2008 at 12:26pm

But Greenpeace still allowed the trees to be cut down in the first place they then allowed the ship to travel thousands of miles to prove a point and get a bit of publicity. If anybody thinks that what has happened is going to change anything then you must be a bit on the stupid side. As already said the practice is illegal so why is it done, for MONEY. Do you really think that those people are going to stop chopping down a few trees just because Greenpeace block one of the ships? Not a chance. And no I won't be climbing 80m up a ships crane or anything else because I am not stupid enough to put myself and others in the sort of danger that the Greenpeace Glory Hunters seem to thrive on.

By Gandalf - 26 March 2008 at 3:01pm

Mr GANDALF..... You are absolutely right this IS all about money bu it is also about pulbic opinion and business , as in the case of an illegal shipment blockaded in similar 'stunt' a couple of years back, where a cargo of ancient timber off cuts that were destined to be pulped for the production of toilet paper and company magazines!!! one of which was an Ikea publication. Guess what....they immediately withdrew their MONEY when they discovered what was happening..Can you see how this works MR GANDALF??? And you are obviously not aware of trhe tireless work of many brave people working in the field risking thier lives on a daily basis to try and prevent these devastating crimes from being committed! And untill you have looked into the eyes of people who have lost homes husbands and brothers to the illegal timber cartels you are in no way qualified to make silly comments from the side lines! Think about it Gandalf get on board we all have our part to play!!! WELL DONE GLORY HUNTERS More press coverage the better!!!!!

By damianbadger - 26 March 2008 at 7:01pm

And if the shipment had been bound for China would Greenpeace have been there. No way. We all know that France is pretty much a safe haven for Greenpeace these days. Still if that's one country not now accepting the stuff there's only a few thousand more to go. The point still stands that Greenpeace allowed the trees to be cut down and then shipped thousands of miles before they did anything. I don't think that's such a silly comment, or perhaps you could explain how it's a silly comment.

By Gandalf - 26 March 2008 at 7:19pm

If you think that going to the logging sites and trying to stop them chopping down trees is the way to do it then maybe you should give it a try! But then again you are not prepared to risk your soft life for the good of the planet and that is where you are so very different from the courageous volunteers who daily risk all the have to make a difference in this world. My son was one of those Glory hunters up that crane! I am immensely proud of him and all the other volunteers who use their passion for changing this world to actually do something about it rather than sitting around complaining. Greenpeace are not responsible for those trees being cut down, we are, every time we buy something without questioning where it came from and how it was made. Just look at the shops full of stuff that most of us don't need that has been made by raping our beautiful planet and exploiting people who were not "lucky" enough to have been born in the west!

By joveggie - 26 March 2008 at 9:03pm

My soft life?? And what soft life would that be then. As you know nothing at all about me then I don't really see how you can comment on my life. Interesting to note that you are proud of your son for committing crimes. It is also interesting to note that the so called eco warriors think that they are right and nobody else's point of view matters, why is that? The point STILL stands. Greenpeace let them cut the trees down and then allowed a ship to sail thousands of miles before they did anything about it.

By Gandalf - 26 March 2008 at 9:54pm

If we had a lot more volunteers, we could guard every square inch of rainforest left on the planet, but somehow I don't think that's going to happen. We are also tackling the illegal logging problem at source: our campaigners in the Amazon are doing amazing work in often dangerous situations, as are teams in South East Asia and central Africa. And no, there haven't been any actions like this in China (the political situation there makes it a bit more tricky than on this side of the world) but as Chinese timber mills are an important link in the illegal timber chain, we're there as well. But as others have pointed out, there's a problem at our end as well and the object of this action was to get some traction going on legislation to cut demand in Europe. web editor gpuk

By jamie - 27 March 2008 at 11:24am

Comments

Follow Greenpeace UK