... from environmentally certified Cultivation - this label suggests controlled management of forests and soothes the conscience of environmentally conscious tropical wood-loving consumers. Timber growing and - weft be accepted under certain criteria as organic, but at what price?
The reality is this:
In Mikumi, leave the so-called Tanzania-Zambia Highway, a busy route from Dar Es Salaam to Lusaka, reached after nearly 3 hours the small town of Ifakara on the banks of Kilombero. Until then, a predominantly poor road with deep potholes and a few paved sections. But the track is varied, you drive through forested hills, past sugar cane plantations and rice fields, tangential to the Udzungwa National Park, rich jungle mountains with magnificent waterfalls and colorful African diversity seen in the villages along the trail.
are in the oncoming traffic is not only inter-city buses, vans and rice beer / cola truck, but also heavily laden timber transport.
Once you have crossed over by ferry happy to follow up Lugala another four hours on - depending on the season - dusty or muddy slopes and some beautiful wooden bridges, all now battered by heavy timber transporters. This route also through forested areas, however, are typical of the original rain forest with all its species richness only a few sections left. The largest part of the path line now extensively planted and fenced-in teak plantations. Where these standing in a row and `member trees soar into the sky grew closer over the centuries and also during the dry season, forest green - and was burned down. Vast areas of forest gone, and thus all animals living there. The Teak "forest" is silent. The typical sounds of the tropical forest, a permanent whistling, chirping, chirping, hissing sound - nothing is heard. Only a few Affen streunen noch herum.
Die schnell wachsenden, großblätterigen Teakbäume entziehen mit ihrem enormen Wasserverbrauch dem Boden das Wasser und sorgen mit dieser Austrocknung für eine weitere Verschlechterung der ohnehin schwierigen Wasserversorgung. Man muss ja nicht gleich jeden Wald zum Nationalpark erklären und keinerlei Bewirtschaftung zulassen, doch diese großflächige Zerstörung eines intakten Ökosystems ist einfach unverantwortlich.
Wie so often, a lot of money in the pockets of fewer people. A few day laborers earn a few shillings for hard work and have to ruin their own country.
B.
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