GE Free New Zealand is joining the International Day of Action to raise awareness of the devastation that the Plantation Forests have on the environment. The Government of Brazil has approved genetically engineered (GE) eucalyptus designed to have tolerance to herbicides and insects is the focus of the Day of Action.

In Brazil there are 16 million acres of Eucalyptus tree plantations, a green desert. The industrial plantations are destroying the native forests; toxic pesticides are polluting the rivers and farms; the waterways are drying up and the wildlife is being threatened with extinction. The degradation, contamination and pollution will further increase if GE eucalyptus trees tolerant to herbicides are planted.

The plantation corporations have illegally encroached on the lands of the Brazilian indigenous, Quilombola and landless peoples, due to the absence of ownership title that would guarantee their right to ancestral lands. This illegal “Green land-grabbing” or “Grilagem Verde’ is leading to a massive increase in deforestation in the Cerrado, Atlantic and Amazon Forest regions.

The illegal encroachment for commodity gain is causing extreme suffering to the indigenous, Quilombola and landless communities affecting their livelihoods and leading to displacement and poverty as people are driven off the land. The corporations are using armed militias to police the illegally taken land. This has led to the assassination of leading indigenous people due to their opposition and airing of their concerns over the encroachment of the land grab of the eucalypt plantation corporations.

On this International Day of Action, we are calling on the Brazilian government to reconsider the approval of the genetically engineered eucalyptus and address the harm that the continued destruction of the rich diverse flora and fauna of Brazil will have on the future generations and overturn the decision to plant GE trees.

References:

All meet at 23 Custom House Quay, Wellington 11am.

https://www.gefree.org.nz/international-day-of-action-stop-ge-trees/

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