Almost 50% Of Panama's Timber is Logged Illegally
Almost 50% Of Panama's Timber is Logged Illegally
The global illegal timber trade could be worth as much as US$100 billion a year.
| Photo: Reuters
Published 26 May 2015 (4 hours 11 minutes ago)
Illegal loggers are ravaging Panama's south for exotic timber.
Illegal logging now accounts for close to half of Panama's timber industry, according to a grim report from the country's environmental ministry Monday.
Of the 110,000 cubic meters of timber logged by Panama annually, nearly 50,000 originates from illegal logging sites, according to the ministry.
Almost all the illegal timber comes from from Panama's southern province of Darien, where the ministry said criminal organizations are felling exotic trees for lucrative profits.
Poverty is largely to blame for the flourishing illegal logging trade, an official from the environmental ministry, Noel Trejos told Panama's La Prensa newspaper.
More:
http://www.telesurtv.net/english/news/Almost-50-Of-Panamas-Timber-is-Logged-Illegally-20150526-0016.html
