De amerikanske børnebøger om “Fancy Nancy”, der udgives af Rupert Murdoch’s HarperCollins, er blevet bestsellere, men en laboratorietest viser, at papiret stammer fra regnskoven i Indonesien, hvor bl.a. den truede Sumatratiger holder til.
SAN FRANSISCO, December 14, 2012: Charismatic children’s character Fancy Nancy may be well known for espousing that ‘every day is earth day,’ but her books have now been linked to one of the world’s most severe deforestation crises, writes Rainforest Action Network in a press release Wednesday.
Independent forensic fiber tests, commissioned by Rainforest Action Network (RAN) and released today, reveal significant quantities of Mixed Tropical Hardwood (MTH) and acacia fiber in the paper of one of HarperCollins’ best selling children’s books, Fancy Nancy’s Splendiferous Christmas.
MTH pulp is produced using timber logged from the rainforests of Indonesia, home to Critically Endangered species such as the Sumatran tiger.
RAN is calling on its members to contact HarperCollins CEO Brian Murray to tell him they don’t want books linked to rainforest destruction.
“No child or parent should become an unwitting participant in rainforest destruction this holiday season,” said Robin Averbeck, a Forest Campaigner with Rainforest Action Network.
“It is past time for HarperCollins to sever ties with Indonesian rainforest destroyers APP and APRIL and join its peers like Scholastic, Hachette, and Disney by adopting a comprehensive global paper policy to keep deforestation, tiger extinction and human rights abuses out of its books.”
HarperCollins, owned by Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp, now remains the sole laggard among major US publishers that has refused to make a firm commitment to disallow the use of fiber from controversial sources.
HarperCollins has a brief paper statement on its website, but the commitment is vague and as today’s test results demonstrate, insufficient to keep rainforest destruction out of the company’s supply chains.
HarperCollins’ UK division has a more robust policy, stating that it will not use paper coming from endangered forest habitats and that it seeks to maximize use of recycled and FSC-certified papers. Yet, this policy does not seem to apply to authors or consumers outside the UK.
High risk acacia fiber was found in HarperCollins titles including Splat the Cat: The Perfect Present for Mom and Dad and Talking Pictures: Images and Messages Rescued from the Past.
Experts estimate that 90% of global acacia pulp comes from Indonesia. This acacia fiber is often linked to social conflict related to the conversion of natural rainforests and peatlands into mono-culture plantations.
Controversial paper giants Asia Pulp and Paper (APP) and Asia Pacific Resources International (APRIL) together produce upwards of eighty per cent of Indonesia’s pulp and paper and are the main source of both MTH and acacia pulp found in the global marketplace.
Both companies are responsible for widespread deforestation and displacement of forest communities from their land. Habitat destruction by these companies is a leading threat to the survival of the Sumatran tiger, of which scientists estimate only a few hundred remain.
Læs mere her: http://ran.org/holiday-shoppers-alerted-rainforest-destruction-harpercollins%E2%80%99-best-selling-books
Begynd ved: “RAN first alerted the US publishing industry to problems…”
