Speach by Phil Woolas MP to the 5th Ministerial Conference on the Protection of Forests in Europe, Warsaw, Poland - 5 November 2007
Today we are of course discussing the challenges facing forestry in Europe. We recognise for economic, environmental and social sustainability the forests of Europe are vitally important for the future of a sustainable Europe.
We meet at a very busy time a month before the Bali Summit where major climate change policies will be addressed. Of course there are powerful socio-economic forces which lead to deforestation in many countries. This is an enormous issue in our view. As has been said by experts deforestation alone contributes to around 20% of global greenhouse gas emissions.The net forest loss between the years 2000 and 2005 was 7.3 million hectares per year. The UK firmly believes that forestry has a key role to playboth through halting deforestation and through afforestation and through restoration of degraded forests. We will be looking to Bali to see that process embedded. The UK is promoting the restoration of forest cover through the Global Partnership on Forest Landscape Restoration. This does of course require resources.
We need further action on sustainable forest management across the globe. We are here with our colleagues to play our part in Europe - and our forests we believe will play their part in the global contribution.
The United Kingdom’s Forestry Commission, our Director General is here with me, was set up in 1919 to rebuild our forest resources after the Great War and indeed following nearly a thousand years of deforestation. In that 80 years since it’s formation we more than doubled our forest area. Today forest management in the UK has shifted radically from the single purpose objective of timber production to one that reflects better the sustainability of production, the management of ecology, wildlife, and water and the needs of people. Our foresters have embraced new skills for the job that reflect the ever-developing concept of sustainable forest management.
We believe that we were the first country in the world to have its public forest estate independently certified against a national standard and we remain committed to managing our forests sustainably.
Increasingly our work takes us beyond the forest to restore the links between urban areas, woods and forests, ultimately with a view to enhancing people’s lives, as other delegates have said.
Here in Warsaw also, we address the role that forests have in benefiting the quality of life.
And that means tackling big challenging issues that threaten our way of life; such as climate change and its consequences, reduced sources of energy, energy security and society’s need for sufficient supplies of water, these issues are inter linked .
Without sustainable forest management we risk losing the important benefits that are provided by forests and creating serious environmental consequences.
Where resources are limited, Payments for Ecosystem Services (PES) can help us to generate alternative resources to secure environmental protection, enhance private-sector involvement and create incentives for investment.
The Warsaw Declaration recognises the role of forests, in climate change mitigation and adaptation.
We are working hard to achieve significant emissions reductions and to take new initiatives on energy efficiency and renewable energy production. This week in our Parliament I will introduce the UK Climate Change Bill which sets a legally binding commitment on ourselves of reducing carbon dioxide emissions in the UK by at least 60% by 2050. We will of course discuss and I believe be able to act on Greenpeace and WWF action points.
Of course the increased demands for energy and the rise of alternative energy sources, such as biofuels place greater demands on productive land and have profound consequences on agriculture. Let me address this issue head on. If the alternative is to carry on using liquid fossil fuels then biofuels are the better alternative–provided they deliver lifecycle greenhouse gas savings and are produced through sustainable land management. Managing sustainably reduces risks to our natural resource and to precious ecosystems.
I would like to thank our hosts, not only for their excellent hospitality but also for the excellent chairing of this conference.
A great opportunity exists for us to continue to work together in the region and in this MCPFE process.
Page published:
5 December 2007