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China seeks Guyana’s resources while implementing logging ban to conserve their forests
By: Kiana Wilburg
China produces 70 to 80 percent of the world’s wood furniture and half of its wood products. This includes particle board and fiberboard.
The East-Asian territory has also become the world’s biggest importer of timber imports and is second in consumption, using about 500 million cubic meters a year. It is no wonder that China’s appetite for logs appears insatiable to nations such as Guyana.
But its ravenous appetite for logs even led to an unconscionable abuse of its own prime forests. International environmentalists and organizations have been increasing the pressure on China for it to take the necessary steps to preserve its forests.
It appears that the Government of China is listening. Since last year and a little before that, the Chinese government has rolled out a series of logging bans in various provinces.
In fact, the Government of China recently released its 13th Five-Year Plan, which lays the foundation for the country’s development through 2020.
Forensic Auditor , Anand Goolsarran
Managing Director for BaiShanLin, Chu Hongbo
Minister of State, Joseph Harmon
This Five-Year Plan explicitly states that China aims for an environmentally and economically sustainable model for its future development.
The East-Asian nation has even earned itself numerous congratulations for demonstrating its commitment towards achieving a “greener economy.”
Reports from China also indicate that there will be a ban on commercial logging of natural forests in State-owned plantations by the end of 2016. The country’s forest experts said that this move will have a positive impact on protecting the country’s forest resources.
Zhang Yongli, Deputy Head of the State Forestry Bureau for example has been noted by the media there, as saying that China will also gradually stop commercial logging of collectively-owned natural forests beginning in 2017.
What is even more remarkable is the fact that China, which logs about 49.94 million cubic meters of natural forest each year, initiated a landmark pilot program to ban all commercial logging of natural forests in key forest zones in the Northeast of China which is called Heilongjiang Province. This was in April 2014, the Xinhua News Agency reported.
The prohibition forests experts said will be extended to all state-owned forests next year, and logging on privately owned land will be stopped by the end of 2017. The bans will cut timber output by 50 million cubic meters per year – the equivalent of 30 percent of logs, Zhang said.
Zhang is also reported as saying, “Our ecosystem has become so bad that it is no longer sustainable for China to continue serving as a world factory for wood products.”
Off to China! Chinese company BaiShanLin shipping hundreds of logs out of Guyana’s forests
However, statistics show that the ban on commercial logging in Heilongjiang primarily affects two major state-owned logging companies – Long Jiang Forest Industry Group and Daxing Anling Forestry Company.
Together, the two companies manage 18.45 million hectares of forests – covering 39 percent of the entirety of Heilongjiang province, according to China’s Xinhua news agency.
What is even more interesting is the fact that Long Jiang Forest Industry Group is set to fully take over BaiShanLin forest Development Inc in Guyana by year end.
Long Jiang already has a 55 percent hold in BaiShanLin.
While China is already taking measures to protect its forests, some of its companies in Guyana have been accused of carrying out a wanton abuse of Guyana’s forests.
BaiShanLin has been at the centre of these accusations.
Forensic auditor, Anand Goolsarran in a recent interview with Kaieteur News said that this company has literally “fooled the nation” while enjoying millions of dollars worth in concessions, the grant of an exploratory permit covering a period of six consecutive years whereas the law allows for a maximum period of three years for such a permit among other “premium” privileges.
Taking into consideration that the Chinese company has failed to fulfill its obligations to Guyana, Goolsarran in his recent audit report of the Guyana Forestry Commission made several recommendations. The fact that the Forests Act does not permit a renewal of a State Forest Exploratory Permit at the end of three years, the contract with the company, Goolsarran said, should be terminated forthwith.
Goolsarran also recommended that State forest currently controlled by BaiShanLin should be returned to the Commission for reallocation.
In addition, he said that the coalition administration should consider terminating the investment agreements with the company and recover the value of the fiscal concessions granted to it.
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