Deforestation drivers
(Illegal logging)
License to Log: Cambodian military facilitates logging on Koh Kong Krao and across the Cardamoms
KOH KONG, Cambodia — “I think there’s a 30% chance we’ll have trouble with the police,” said Ly Chandaravuth, an environmental activist with the outlawed group Mother Nature Cambodia. This was in August 2022, when Mother Nature Cambodia was planning a trip to Koh Kong Krao, ...
Gerald Flynn
Large-scale logging in Cambodia’s Prey Lang linked to politically-connected mining operation
The early onset of Cambodia’s wet season had seen the rain fall thick over Prey Lang Wildlife Sanctuary, turning freshly cut paths through the forest into a near-impassible slick of churned-up mud. But the torrential weather had done little to deter local loggers, who rode ...
Gerald Flynn|Andy Ball|Vutha Srey
How can illegal timber trade in the Greater Mekong be stopped?
Over the past decade, the European Union entered into collaborative agreements with tropical timber-producing countries to fight forest crime and verify the legality of wood imported into the EU. Within the Greater Mekong, Vietnam was the first (and to date, only) country to sign such a voluntary ...
Sheryl Lee Tian Tong
Where does the Greater Mekong’s illegal timber go?
After forests are logged, felled trees are typically sent to sawmills, where they’re processed into boards, or lumber. It’s in this processed form that wood typically enters the international commodity supply chain. But not all lumber is created equal. In the Greater Mekong region, high-quality hardwoods ...
Sheryl Lee Tian Tong
The Greater Mekong region: A hotspot of wildlife and crime
Did you know that illegal logging can be five times as lucrative as selling the world’s most well-known soda? In 2020, the Coca-Cola company reported $33 billion in revenue. The global illegal timber trade, in comparison, generates up to $152 billion a year — accounting for up ...
Sheryl Lee Tian Tong
Myanmar seizes over 510 tonnes of illegal timbers over one month
Myanmar authorities seized over 510 tonnes of illegal timbers across the country over one month, according to a release from the Forest Department under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environmental Conservation on Wednesday (Oct 6). The seizures were made in the country’s regions, states and ...
Illegal timber seized at temple, man arrested
A man was arrested and a quantity of illegally cut timber logs seized at a temple in Sai Yok district of this western border province on Monday. Sawit Jiamjiraporn, the Sai Yok district chief, led a team of administrative officials and defence volunteers, to search Nong ...
PIYARAT CHONGCHAROEN
Illegal logging on the rise in Arakan amid political instability: environmental group
Despite the depletion of forest resources in Arakan State and the need for timely conservation efforts, illegal logging has been increasing during Myanmar’s current political unrest, said Dr. Maung Maung Kyi, chairman of the Rakhine Coastal Region Conservation Association (RCA). He continued that while forest resources ...
Development Media Group
Illegal company stopped from filling flooded forest in Banteay Meanchey
An illegal company that was not identified was stopped by authorities from filling in a protected flooded forest area in Banteay Meanchey province. Some villagers in Preah Netr Preah district’s Rohal commune said that in less than one year, 300 hectares were cleared and filled and ...
Yin Soeum
USAID helps Vietnam's climate change fight with two new projects
Aerial view of the Ru Cha mangrove forest in Thua Thien-Hue Province. Photo by VnExpress/Vo Thanh. USAID has launched two new conservation and forest management projects to help Vietnam’s fight against the climate crisis, the U.S. Embassy said Tuesday. The Sustainable Forest Management project, implemented by U.S.-based ...
Phan Anh