UNEP launches global platform to protect forests

The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) has teamed up with Google, World Resources Institute (WRI) and over 40 environmentalists to launch a near-real time forest monitoring system to track deforestation worldwide. The on-line forest monitoring and alert system, dubbed Global Forest Watch (GFW), will show tree losses around the world in high resolution and with frequent updates, UNEP said in a statement issued in Nairobi on Friday. The data targeting both policymakers and companies buying from forest areas will be available for free and not require much technical skill to use. "For the first time, Global Forest Watch unites the latest satellite technology, open data, and crowd sourcing to guarantee access to timely and reliable information about forests," the statement said. UNEP Executive Director Achim Steiner said technology has provided Global Forest Watch with a unique opportunity to connect not only information and data but people, or consumers across the globe. "This is a great example of a community coming together and providing the world with a truly groundbreaking and pioneering product," Steiner said. "Hopefully in a few years' time we will be able to monitor the impact and the results in terms of what actually happens on the ground that will be both a litmus test and I think the greatest affirmation that the time for this idea had come." The planet lost some 2.3 million square kilometers (900,000 square miles) of forest from 2000 to 2012, according to data by Google and the University of Maryland, despite what some environmentalists call good-faith efforts by nations such as Indonesia. The platform will allow anyone to look on-line and verify the boundaries of protected forests, including buyers of palm oil who want to avoid illicit production. "GFW is an ambitious vision, and yet it's both timely and achievable given WRI's knowledge of environmental science and policy, strong partnerships, and the high-performance Google cloud technology that we are donating to this initiative," said Rebecca Moore, engineering manager of Google Earth Outreach and Earth Engine. Deforestation plays a critical role in worsening climate change as forests which cover nearly a third of the planet act as a natural sink, trapping in carbon emissions that would otherwise head into the atmosphere. Global Forest Watch will enable financial institutions to better evaluate if the companies they invest in adequately assess forest-related risks. Buyers of major commodities such as palm oil, soy, timber, and beef can better monitor compliance with laws, sustainability commitments and standards, the statement said. The platform can support other users like indigenous communities, who can upload alerts and photos when encroachment occurs on their lands; and NGOs that can identify deforestation hotspots, mobilize action, and collect evidence to hold governments and companies accountable. The platform can help governments to design smarter policies, enforce forest laws, detect illegal forest clearing, manage forests more sustainably, and achieve conservation and climate goals.