Missing: Forest Protection in the Climate Negotiations

By Becky Ran

Today was the last day of the third round of climate negotiations in Bonn – another interim step on the way to the high level treaty negotiations in Copenhagen in December.

To this point, many countries have made a lot of noise about the REDD component of the treaty, acknowledging the fact that protecting intact natural forests and stopping degradation of the soil beneath them is a key component of a global climate change solution. But the public rhetoric of governments is not flowing through to the latest negotiating text. Reports back from Bonn actually indicate that substantive forest protection is actually totally missing ….

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The rest of the negotiations don’t seem to be faring much better. Check out the coverage of the final day here, here and here.