[Gasification] BRAZIL EUCALIPTUS FSC, RIGHT TRANSLATION SPANISH /ENGLISH

Thu Feb 28 16:03:41 CST 2008

Brazil: investigation questions certification of two plantations by the FSC a group of seven investigators evaluated the certifications of the company V&M Florestal Ltda. (Vallourec & Mannesman), that in 1999 obtained the certification of the FSC for all its area of 235,886 hectares, through certifier SGS, like also those of Plantar Reflorestamentos S.A., that received the certification of SCS by an area of 13,287 hectares. With this certification, V&M Florestal became the company with more area certified in Brazil. Of the total of the area, 128,326 hectares are planted with eucalyptuses, whereas the rest, 107,560 hectares, is areas of left cultures and areas of "cerrado", the typical wooded vegetation of the region (the closed one is a tropical savannah in which the herbaceous vegetation coexists with more than 420 species of trees and dispersed shrubs). To plant has near 280,000 hectares, which means that only certificó the 4,8% of its earth. One is then two megaempresas
 of the sector of plantation of eucalyptuses in Brazil, whose production is destined to the vegetal coal manufacture. Almost all the eucalyptus that plants V&M Florestal uses to make steel tubes in the V&M factory of Brazil. Both companies have a single proprietor and almost all the capital is francoalemán. A.su.vez, Plantar S.A., a Brazilian company of capital, uses its eucalyptus for the iron smelting, except for the area certified by the FSC, whose wood is used to produce roasted coal for. To also plant tries to participate in the "mercado one of carbono" selling bonds of the plantations. In summary, the main activities of the evaluated companies are the plantation and extraction of eucalyptus for the coal production. We verified that the companies certifiers SGS and SCS committed a series of irregularities during the certification process: - they did not make a deep study of the context that surrounds to the companies that plant eucalyptus and despised a series of
 social aspects, economic and environmental important; - They listened to few "actores involucrados" and only to less critical. And, it is more, did not listen to the "actores involucrados" more important and, therefore, they did not obtain fundamental data on a series of serious problems that involve the companies; - it was not clear if the conditions and recommendations in fact reverted the evident breach of certain principles and/or criteria of the FSC and if it is becoming the pursuit adapted to the fulfillment of those conditions and recommendations; - they did not spread the public summary of the certification so that the society knew local and regional civil, even the organisms public; SGS not even made available in the Internet a version of the public summary in Portuguese, the official language of Brazil. The following ones are some of the main breaches on the part of the companies of the Principles and Criteria of the FSC that was verified during the
 investigation: - as much in the company V&M Florestal like in Planting, it was verified that it was not made the Study and Report of Impactos Ambientales (EIA/RIMA), a legal exigency to take ahead any emprendimiento that causes to potentials environmental impacts in Brazil. As it were verified, one is in a deadlock between, on the one hand, the technicians of the responsible state organism, the State Institute of Forests, that demand the study and, on the other hand, V&M Florestal, that does not want that this study is made. - There are forts indications that great part of territories of the companies was what in Brazil earth are denominated "devolutas", that is, territories of communal use and, therefore, pertaining to the State. Therefore, the companies could not them have bought. Even so, in search of earth, the companies were able to rent these lands to the dictatorial government of years 1970, by means of contracts with state agency Ruralminas by a term of 20 years.
 In these last years, these contracts began to expire, which threatens the continuity of the possession. - There are conflicts by the Earth with local proprietors who have plantations of eucalyptus of the company in their property. - From September of 2002, a Parliamentary Investigating Commission, installed in the Parliament of the State of Gerais Mines, is with the sight put in the companies V&M Florestal y Plantar S.A., to investigate the conditions of work of the workers of the extractive industry of Gerais Mines. In March of 2002, the Regional Police station of Work put under process to both companies not to respect the Brazilian labor laws. At the moment, the Public Ministry of Work is judging them by means of Public a Civil action by the positions of illegal practices of tercerización, of degrading and precarious work. - Most of the workers who work in the registered areas are tercerizados, with many less rights and benefits than the fixed employees of the companies;
 we emphasized that the tasks that they make are extremely heavy and dangerous. In agreement with the Public Ministry of Work, negra" is a "lista; in two companies evaluated, which indicates that the companies persecute to the workers and their leaders, reason why violate agreements 87 and 98 of the OIT. - the plantations of eucalyptuses do not generate social, environmental nor economic benefits for the neighboring communities. The zones of "cerrado", that they have been always used by the communities due to his extraordinary biodiversity, they were surrounded by the company, which prevents that these earth are used collectively by the local communities. "cerrado" it has always had all the conditions for a sustentables use and handling, generating work and income. - the deforestation of "cerrado" and the plantation of eucalyptuses on the part of the companies caused the drying of rivers and water easts, the diminution of the flora and the fauna of the region, stimulated
 the erosion and poisoned workers, to the fauna and the existing hydric resources with agrotóxicos. The company V&M Florestal continues using the herbicida oxyfluorofen, defined like persistent toxic and by the own FSC in 2000, in agreement with the report of pursuit of SGS of 2001. - Near 25% of the plantations of eucalyptus of V&M Florestal they are installed in a region with annual precipitations of about 1000 mm, advise againstable amount for this type of plantation on great scale, as they testify the dry rivers, gorges and humedales in the region. - the companies have a plan of orchestrated single handling for the eucalyptus areas and it does not stop the other areas. In the case of V&M Florestal, 46% of the registered area do not have a plan of implemented handling. After to have received the certification, this company began to present/display relevamientos of flora and fauna and plans of pursuit for those areas, objetivando a handling plan, that until today is not
 implementing. - the V&M company of Brazil, that buys all its coal to V&M Florestal, continues buying wood coal of "cerrado" in order to supply to its high furnaces and without having information on the safekeeping chain, that is to say, that are no guarantees from which the certified coal really comes from the Units of Forest Handling certified. The report concludes that it is necessary that the FSC divides their seal in two new ones: one for the handling of native forests and another one for the handling of plantations. Of these studies of case it is clear that Principles 1 to 9 were elaborated for the handling of native forests and that in his great majority they are absolutely inadequate for plantations of monocultures of trees, whose specific characteristics are totally different from those from a native forest, diversified and heterogenous. In addition to that, one would increase much the transparency and the credibility of the FSC in front of the consumers, if these
 could differentiate from where the product comes that they buy: of a plantation "industrial" made by a megaempresa with exotic trees, installed in the middle of "cerrado"; or of a cooperative of local communities that handles of sustainable way "cerrado" and its native and own species. For "construir" a new seal for the certification of plantations, that is credible, is necessary that to principles and specific criteria are discussed, from a deep debate, that necessarily involve the local communities, to guarantee that the future registered plantations offer social benefits, cultural, environmental and economic. It will imply to introduce a minimum of biodiversity of species in each plantation, being guaranteed the multiple use and the advantage of forest products by the local communities, the ecological stability in the site and one better adaptation from the plantation to its atmosphere. Therefore, the FSC has two ways: more and more to continue certificando million
 hectares of plantations, losing its credibility and harming the local communities, or to review the certification of great plantations, entering a new course, respecting and wanting to benefit to the local communities and its atmosphere, besides to increase its credibility and, therefore, its confidence before the consumer

---------------------------------

Yahoo! Encuentros
Ahora encontrar pareja es mucho más fácil, probá el nuevo Yahoo! Encuentros.
 Visitá http://yahoo.cupidovirtual.com/servlet/NewRegistration