{"id":7781,"date":"2019-09-04T16:12:56","date_gmt":"2019-09-04T16:12:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/africa\/?p=7781"},"modified":"2019-11-06T08:21:40","modified_gmt":"2019-11-06T08:21:40","slug":"greenpeace-africa-on-congo-brazzaville-cafi-agreement-peatlands-must-be-a-no-go-zone-for-all-industrial-activity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.greenpeace.org\/africa\/en\/press\/7781\/greenpeace-africa-on-congo-brazzaville-cafi-agreement-peatlands-must-be-a-no-go-zone-for-all-industrial-activity\/","title":{"rendered":"Greenpeace Africa on Congo-Brazzaville CAFI agreement: \u201cPeatlands must be a no-go zone for all industrial activity\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"

Johannesburg, 4 September 2019 – Greenpeace Africa denounces the surprise signature of a CAFI Letter of Intent (LoI) by the presidents of France and the Republic of the Congo, giving a free pass to drill for oil in the peatlands <\/b>[1]<\/span>.<\/b><\/p>\n

The <\/span>LoI<\/span><\/a> between the Central African Forest Initiative (<\/span>CAFI<\/span><\/a>) and the Republic of the Congo was signed [2] only two weeks after the Congolese regime celebrated the “discovery” of a peatland oil deposit that it said could quadruple national oil production. The accord calls merely for “minimization of the impacts” of oil drilling in peatlands. <\/span><\/p>\n

Furthermore, the LoI\u2019s language about \u201cforest governance\u201d reflects decades of donor PR for the multinational logging industry and fails to address the deeply rooted corruption in the sector. [3].<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe agreement\u2019s ban on large-scale drainage, if implemented, would do nothing to keep <\/span>oil and gas companies out<\/span><\/a>. Although the current status of Total’s Cuvette Centrale oil blocks – one in the heart of the peatlands, the other covering the totality of a National Park – is unclear,\u00a0 Macron will have an excellent opportunity to clarify it today – in his meeting with the CEO of Total!\u201d <\/span>said <\/span>Ir\u00e8ne Wabiwa Betoko, Greenpeace Africa Senior Forest Manager. \u201cGreenpeace Africa firmly denounces this agreement – <\/span>peatlands must be a no-go zone for all industrial activity<\/span>,\u201d Wabiwa Betoko concluded.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

(See Greenpeace Africa\u2019s <\/span>English<\/span><\/a> and <\/span>French<\/span><\/a> tweets from this morning)<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

(<\/span>Downloadable map of peatland oil blocks<\/span><\/a> in the RoC produced by Greenpeace Africa)<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

ENDS\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Contact :<\/b><\/p>\n

Ir\u00e8ne Wabiwa Betoko, Greenpeace Africa Senior Forest Manager,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Mobile: +243 976 756 102, Emai<\/span>l: <\/span>irene.wabiwa@greenpeace.org<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Tal Harris, International Communications Coordinator for Greenpeace Africa,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Mobile: +221 776 73 04 96, Email: <\/span>tal.harris@greenpeace.org<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Comments :<\/b><\/p>\n

[1] The Cuvette Centrale peatlands straddling the two Congos constitute <\/span>the world\u2019s largest tropical peatland complex<\/span><\/a>, covering 158,887 km\u00b2 and containing more than 30 billion tons of carbon. If the peatlands were to be disturbed and drained, the equivalent of three years of global CO\u2082 emissions could be released. See:<\/span><\/p>\n

Nature: <\/span>http:\/\/www.nature.com\/nature\/journal\/v542\/n7639\/full\/nature21048.html<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

[2<\/span>]CAFI PR:
\nhttp:\/\/www.cafi.org\/content\/cafi\/en\/home\/all-news\/republic-of-congo-and-cafi-sign-65-million-dollars-letter-of-int.html<\/a>
\nEntretien entre le Pr\u00e9sident de la R\u00e9publique et le Pr\u00e9sident de la R\u00e9publique du Congo\u201d
\nhttps:\/\/www.elysee.fr\/emmanuel-macron\/2019\/09\/03\/entretien-entre-le-president-de-la-republique-et-le-president-de-la-republique-du-congo<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

[3] EIA report: \u201cToxic Trade: Forest Crime in Gabon and the Republic of Congo and Contamination of the US Market\u201d:<\/span><\/p>\n

https:\/\/eia-global.org\/reports\/20190325-toxic-trade<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Greenpeace report: Cut from Congo: Industrial logging and the loss of intact forest landscapes in the Congo Basin\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

https:\/\/cdn.greenpeace.fr\/site\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Greenpeace_IFL_report_final.pdf<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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