§ Mr. MeacherTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what countries have benefited from United Kingdom bilateral aid assistance under the tropical forestry action plan; and how much money has been pledged and disbursed in relation to each recipient country.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydThe following countries/areas have benefited from United Kingdom bilateral aid assistance under agreed tropical forestry action plans over the last five years.
Pledged Disbursed £ million £ million Belize Total to be determined 0.404 Cameroon 1.900 1.000 Caribbean Community 0.294 0.245 Costa Rica 0.706 0 Ghana 5.491 3.566 Honduras 4.152 1.765 Jamaica Total to be determined 0.012 Nepal 9.285 3.613 Papua New Guinea 0.229 0.182 Sri Lanka 10.343 5.900 Total 32.400 16.687
§ Mr. MeacherTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs when the publication of the African Development bank's forestry policy will take place.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydThe African Development bank's forestry policy paper was issued in draft on 2 December 1992. Internal consultations are expected to be completed by end-January 1993, and publication should follow shortly thereafter.
§ Mr. MeacherTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will give details of bilateral forestry projects approved for Brazil with total estimated costs.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydFollowing is the information:
1. ABRACOS (Anglo-Brazilian Amazonian climate observation study) operates in the states of Amazonas, Para and Rondonia. The British Institute of Hydrology (IH) is Project Manager, and INPE (Space Research Institute), is the lead Brazilian collaborating institute. together with INPA (National Research Institute for Amazonia) and CENA (Centre for Nuclear Energy in Agriculture). The project is a study of the impact of deforestation on climate. The objective is to improve the accuracy and credibility of general circulation model (GCM) predictions of the climatic consequences of Amazonian deforestation by addressing the land/ atmosphere interaction and the difference in near surface climate associated with forest clearance. The project 493W follows the pioneering work of IH and INPE in the mid-1980s and involves the establishment of four field measuring stations in Amazonas, Para and Rondonia. The Amazonas sites were established in 1990, and the other two set up during 1991. Brazilian scientists take field readings throughout the year, and British scientists participate in periodic intensive field missions. The project was agreed in March 1990 and the first field mission was in September-November 1990. The total cost of the project to ODA is £2.9 million over five years, including the £0.5 million of specialist equipment.
2. Caxiuana research station project, Para state has the Museu Paraense Emilio Goeldi as project manager. The project involves the establishment of a new biological research station in the Caxivana national forest, with appropriate infrastructure and facilities. We are providing financial support for local construction costs, transport (vehicles and boats) and laboratory equipment, and technical assistance (mainly short-term inputs, plus one full-time expert). The project will provide a well-equipped research station in an undisturbed forest area rich in biodiversity. It should become one of the leading facilities for rainforest research anywhere in the tropics. Construction commenced in February 1992. The cost to ODA is £1.28 million over three years.
3. The aromatic plants development project, Para state has the British Natural Resources Institute (NRI) and Museu Goeldi as joint project managers. FCAP (facility of agricultural science of the university of Para) is also collaborating. The project is an evaluation of the economic potential of the aromatic plants of the state of Para, through a study of indigenous aromatic plants and two applied research programmes concerned with the development potential of rosewood and the aromatic herbs of the piper genus. The project involves a series of short-term consultancies and a programme of plant collection and analysis in Brazil and Britain. Field collections and trials are under way and a natural products laboratory built and equipped. The cost to ODA is £0.6 million over three years, starting in 1991.
4. The floodplain forest ecology and management project, near Belem, Para state has the Museu Goeldi as project manager. The project consists of biological studies of the ecology, natural regeneration and flora of flooded forest, economic studies of farm/forest production systems and an extension programme based at Combu island near Belem. The cost to ODA is £0.24 million over two years, from 1991.
5. The Tocantins forestry and rural development project, Para state aims to conserve the forest in the Brazil nut zone around Maraba through improving the farming systems and living conditions of small farmers. The project will develop ways of improving agricultural productivity and stability through the introduction of agroforestry, tree crops and better marketing systems. Ways of managing and conserving the remaining forest will also be investigated. IDESP (Institute of Socio-Economic Development of Para state) is project manager but field implementation is in the hands of the Tocantins agroenvironmental centre, a local NGO which brings together small farmers from the Maraba area together with researchers from the university of Para. The project was approved in September 1991. The ODA contribution amounts to £1.1 million over three years and consists of technical assistance, training material and equipment.
6. Forest biomass and nutrients research project, Manaus, Amazonas state with INPA (National Research Institute for Amazonia) and NRI as project managers. The proposal involves research on the distribution and dynamics of biomass and minerals in tropical forest. The cost to ODA is £1.74 million over three years, starting this year.
7. The central Amazonia flora and vegetation project, near Manaus, Amazonas state. The project has been designed by INPA and the royal botanic gardens, Kew. It consists of botanical collections, taxonomic studies, the production of a guide to the flora of the Ducke reserve near Manaus, and vegetation-type mapping in central Amazonia. The cost to ODA is £0.57 million over three years, starting this year.
8. Rainforest silviculture research project, CPATU. The eastern Amazonia agroforestry research centre of the Brazilian Agricultural Research Institute (CPATUEMBRAPA), Belem, is managing this project. The five year programme of studies on forest growth, production and 494W regeneration, timber extraction techniques and genetic resource conservation is aimed at improving forest management. The ODA contribution will consist primarily of training and provision of technical assistance in tropical forest research, and will cost £2.2 million over five years starting this year.
9. Tapajos national forest management project. We are providing £0.85 million through the International Tropical Timber Organisation to support IBAMA (the Federal Environment Institute) to set up a system of sustainable logging practices in a 5,000 hectare area of the Tapajos national forest. Commercial logging will take place under licence to IBAMA. The project aims to provide a model of sustainable logging for Brazil. The project will be managed by the ITTO; ODA will be represented on a project steering committee. The project was agreed in April 1992, and will last five years.
10. Implementation of the Lake Mamiraua ecological station, near Tefe, Amazonas state. The project involves protection and development of a management plan for 200,000 hectares of flooded forest within a recently established state ecological station. It aims to establish a programme that integrates the conservation of biodiversity with the livelihood of local people living within the protected area. Estimated cost to ODA is £1.6 million over three years. The project is also being funded by the World Wide Fund for Nature and World Conservation International. It is expected to begin shortly.
§ Mr. MeacherTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what instructions have been passed to the British executive director at the African Development bank regarding that organisation's planned publication of a forestry policy.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydWe have encouraged the bank for some time to establish and publish its forestry policy. We are currently considering the draft proposals which we have just received.
§ Mr. MeacherTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he had with Senhor Sydney Possuelo, the head of Brazil's Indian Agency, about the illegal mahogany trade with Britain.
§ Mr. Lennox-BoydNone.