| Submit your comments on this article |
| -Signs, Portents, and the Weather- |
| Greenpeace blocks ship carrying newsprint |
| 2007-10-14 |
| Greenpeace activists on Saturday blockaded a cargo ship they claimed was carrying newsprint made from trees felled in Canadian old growth forests. The environmentalists said they were preventing the 560-foot ship Finnwood from unloading its paper cargo at Terneuzen port, 130 miles south of Amsterdam, and were daubing on its side a slogan calling for newspapers not to use paper made from old growth forests. Hilde Stroot, campaign leader for Greenpeace Netherlands, said more than 1.7 million acres of Canadian forest — home to threatened species such as the lynx, wolf and caribou — are cleared each year. "Huge areas of forest are being destroyed for newspapers, books and toilet tissue," Stroot said. Greenpeace said the paper on board the ship was from Canadian forest products company Abitibi-Consolidated LLC and is used by all of the Netherlands' major newspaper publishers. Abitibi did not immediately return an after hours call to its office in Montreal. The company's Web site said that its newsprint is made of up to 100 percent recycled paper, but Greenpeace claimed samples they have had tested contained up to 90 percent new wood fibers. |
| Posted by:Seafarious |
| #10 You're right TW. Pines here serve for multiple purposes. But, it's typically grown on farms nowadays. Ah well, if the NY Slimes and other "printed" newspapers continue on their downward slide, Greenpeace should be happy. Maybe ol' Pinch is doin' it for Mother Gaia. |
| Posted by: BA 2007-10-14 22:36 |
| #9 I think in the Southeast the paper mills use Southern (Loblolly?) pine. But I could be mistaken. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2007-10-14 18:24 |
| #8 Sounds like government land. Forest companies don't treat their land like that. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2007-10-14 16:09 |
| #7 Jim there are old growth pine forests. I'm looking at one out my window. For years we have flown over old pine forests north of Sioux Lookout. You can not believe what the loggers have done. Hundreds of miles clear cut with zero re-plantings. One of the stupidest moves I've seen regarding land use. Makes me sick. Also isn't the fast growing Poplar typically used for pulp? |
| Posted by: Icerigger 2007-10-14 16:02 |
| #6 I'm with you WTF, old growth is NOT used for paper, Pine is used for paper, not hardwoods. Again, sink their ship (Again and again, and again until they get the message, or are broke) |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2007-10-14 14:24 |
| #5 It is my understanding that most junky paper products like newprint and bags are made from fast-growing trees planted and grown specifically for paper pulp. Big chunks of old-growth wood are more valuable as lumber. Of course, there are branches and trimmings from any logging operation that could be pulped, but I would expect the extra handling required would make that expensive compared to pulp from a tree plantation. Color me sceptical. |
| Posted by: SteveS 2007-10-14 14:20 |
| #4 Sink their ship, again. |
| Posted by: Redneck Jim 2007-10-14 14:15 |
| #3 The self-righteousness (and lack of self-examination) of Greenpeacers knows no bounds. |
| Posted by: lotp 2007-10-14 14:06 |
| #2 She dares to fuss while living on land that was once old growth swamp and sea bottom? |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2007-10-14 13:48 |
| #1 Greenpace however refused to comment on whether its claim of destroying old growth forests to make toilet paper had also been 100% recycled. |
| Posted by: WTF 2007-10-14 10:21 |