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Under threat

Clearcutting ancient temperate rainforest in Clayoquot Sound, British Columbia, Canada.

Industrial clearcutting of ancient temperate rainforest in North America.

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The US has already lost more than 94 percent of its ancient forest, and up to 85 percent of its remaining forest is under immediate threat.

What's more, the US has refused to make a formal commitment to the Convention on Biological Diversity - thus, in effect, refusing to commit to saving its remaining biological and cultural diversity.

Between 1990 and 2000 North America lost at least 12.3 million hectares of natural or ancient forest, and although on paper there has been some increase in the area of land designated for conservation from 6.9 to 11.1 percent, little of this is within the remaining intact ancient forests.

Canada and the US are G8 countries, which committed at the 1998 G8 meeting in Birmingham to eliminate the trade in illegal timber. This commitment was reaffirmed at both the 1999 and 2000 G8 Summits.

However, the US, in particular, continues to import indiscriminately from ancient forest regions, including the Amazon, where illegal logging is rampant.

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