On 12/3/95 Nelson Wong writes: > A lot has been said without a single piece of evidence. In this case, you > have to bear the burden of proof. The abovementioned hypothesis is null and > void of intellectual integrity. The timber industry is not a corrupt and > sordid industry, as you have painted. Mr. Wong--a recent GAO audit of Forest Service timber sales for fiscal year 1994 found that the Siskiyou National Forest lost $28.6 million, and the Klamath National Forest lost $26.3 million. Between 1992-1994, the Forest Service spent $1.3 *billion* preparing timber sales, and only collected $300 million in timber-sale reciepts. A Febuary 1994 report by the Interior Department's inspector general found that $5.4 million that had been specifically budgeted for reforestation of BLM public lands in Oregon, had been illegally diverted to other uses such as purchasing office furniture, building maintenance, and staff salaries. Is this sufficient evidence? > Malaysia is moving in the direction by which, all timber products exported > will be from forest plantations by the year 2000. This way, the > virgin/old growth forests will be left alone. We want to maintain a 75 > per cent tree cover for the whole country. Of course, the > environmentalists will have something else to say. How else can they > raise funds and stay in 'business' ? > > Nelson Wong > Malaysian Timber Council Mr. Wong--approximately what percentage of your original virgin/old growth forests are still there? 10%? 5%? Could you give us a status report on the indigenous peoples of your country, like the Penan People of Sarawak who are being displaced from the ancestral lands that they have inhabited for thousands of years in order to make way for your "forest plantations?" What percentage of your country's timber reciepts go to the indigenous peoples whom represent some of the last known hunter-gatherer bands in the world? Are the Penan to be reduced to a tourist attraction in the Mulu National Park in order to convert your native forests to "plantations." You forget that environmentalists also have the annoying habit of fighting against human rights abuses, that is when were not busy making up stories about environmental degradation just to keep ourselves employed. Bret Diamond Oregon, USA diam9018@tao.sosc.osshe.edu
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