More than 300 incorporated land groups (ILG), representing over 40,000 people in East Pangia, Southern Highlands have given the go-ahead for a carbon trading project to start in their area.
In moving ceremonies that started in Port Moresby and ended in Apanda village on the weekend, chairmen of more 300 ILGs signed the documents required to create a carbon trading project to save the beautiful rainforests of Pangia District.
The process started last October, when in another colourful ceremony attended by 5000 people, the power of attorney for the project was transferred from Timothy Tepi of East Pangia Limited, owned by Tiyebo tribe to Kirk William Roberts of Nupan (PNG) Trading Corporation Limited
The ILGs were acting in the face of a real threat from a Madang logging company, which had lodged a submission to exercise forestry concession rights for logging in East Pangia, which originally were granted 17 years ago.
The Post-Courier was informed that the Minister for Forestry and the board had set aside the application just two days before the first ILG’s signed the carbon trading project, thereby sending the strongest possible signal to the Government that the people did not want to log, but to go into carbon trade.
“Mr Peter O’Neill, the local member, tried many times to tell us to log the area,” one of the ILG chairmen told this reporter, “and he even flew in to meet with us in a helicopter. We believe he has a saw mill in the project area.”
The position taken by the people was evident on Saturday. The Undiopa and Apanda villages came alive as hundreds of people displayed banners saying ‘No logging’, and ‘We want carbon trading’.
The voice of the people supporting the actions of the ILG chairmen was raised in support of carbon trading in no uncertain manner. The project team made it clear as to what the ILGs were signing for and that was; the people owned the land, the people owned the trees and the people were making the decision.
They were told that the carbon credits generated would belong to them. The people were also told that many of them and their children, and their children’s children, would be employed by the incorporated entity
SOURCE: POST COURIER/PACNEWS
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