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forestrylatest news & developments
Fishy business: Abalone smuggling in the Western Cape has been and remains an ongoing battle despite attempts to suppress illegal poaching. Photo: Steve Eggington/Gallo Images

Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment

South Africa has had a mixed bag of environmental ministers over the past 30 years and, bar a few, most have taken the environmental agenda forward

The World Bank Group, in partnership with the African Development Bank  (AfDB) and other collaborators, recently launched Mission 300, which aims to connect 300 million people to electricity in sub-Saharan Africa by 2030. (Supplied)

Beware using Karpowership as a temporary electricity solution

The energy crisis has to be resolved. But crises also typically create opportunities for unproductive rent-seeking

Polyphagous shot hole borer

Tiny shot hole borer beetle is causing big problems

The invasion of this destructive beetle wiping out trees is only in its infancy and scientists expect ecological and social costs to rack up

Sixteen southern white rhinos have been moved from &Beyond Phinda Private Game Reserve in KwaZulu-Natal to Garamba National Park in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
(Photo by Wolfgang Kaehler/LightRocket via Getty Images)

Kruger loses 70% of rhinos in 10 years

The good news is that the drought has eased, poaching is down and the environment department is now not only focusing on the poachers but is going after crime syndicates

Britain’s Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, helps a schoolboy to plant a tree at the Chobe National Park, on day four of the royal tour of Africa, in Botswana. (Dominic Lipinski/Pool via Reuters)

The trouble with indiscriminate tree-planting in Africa

Planting trees in Africa is proposed by some as a quick fix for climate change. But local experts disagree — and say their voices are being sidelined

Ambassadors from Kenya, Ghana, Liberia and Tanzania this week discussed how to improve climate literacy among Africa’s youth and announced the launch of a toolkit for the campaign. (Reuters)

Developing countries like Gabon are finding climate solutions

Developing countries such as ours cannot follow the same growth path that Western economies have taken over the last century and a half

Jogger’s paradise: Locals helped turn Karura Forest into a safe

Reclaiming Nairobi’s forest

It took 10 years to rescue Karura from land-grabbers and criminals and turn it into an urban refuge

Forestry South Africa
 (Photo Archive)

Forestry South Africa

Trailblazing in public spaces

An example of woody plant encroachment over Eagle-Siding in South Africa’s Eastern Cape province. D Edwards (1954) and James Puttick (2010). (Images courtesy of rePhotoSA)

Woody plants on the march: Trees and shrubs are encroaching across Africa

Woody plants’ cover has increased across large swathes of the continent in the past three decades

Does our thirsty forestry industry need a radical rethink about use of resources?

Using 98% of a tree — instead of the 48% of used today — will dramatically change the industry.

Corridors of natural vegetation are essential in plantations if biodiversity is to survive. Photo: File

Casual forestry workers lose benefits

Workers in sectors such as forestry have been reporting that their working conditions are worsening as casualisation continues apace.

Sappi to sell Swaziland forest for R1-billion to cut debt

The world’s largest maker of glossy paper will sell 67 000 hectares of forest in Swaziland for R1-billion in order to finance debt.

Paper producer stops logging in Indonesia after green activism

The world’s third-largest paper producer Asia Pulp and Paper says it has stopped using logs from Indonesia’s natural forests.

Absolutely Fabi-lous

The Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute is in war mode defending indigenous forests, writes Sharon van Wyk.

Mondi signs R20,5m land-claim settlement

A R20,5-million land-claim settlement between paper and packaging giant Mondi and two recipient communities was signed on Wednesday.

Pushing the boundaries of science

Professor Brenda Wingfield has always pushed the boundaries of science. She was the first person to start DNA sequencing of filamentous fungi in SA.