The majority of modern climate concerns have focused heavily on the developed world. Well-entrenched industries with deep pockets and friendly politicians have kept the United States as the world’s top producer of heat-trapping emissions since such statistics began to be kept. Lurking just behind the United States—or having just surpassed it—the rapidly developing People’s Republic of China presents an extremely large, powerful and well-contected industrial sector that must be reigned in if meaningful greenhouse gas reductions are to be achieved. 

But as difficult as passing legislation to control these reigning industrial titans might be, less developed countries can present an even greater challenge.  On one level, the problem is political; high turnover within the government, and in some places between governments prevents climate initiatives from gaining the momentum and wide based-support they needs to come to fruition as useful legislation.  High levels of corruption also furthers the dilemma, making it hard for legislators in a distant capitol to effectively monitor or control conditions on the ground.

On another, more significant level, though, the problem is ecological. While fully-modernized nations dominate the heat-trapping emissions list courtesy of industrial processes like the burning of fossil fuels, the list that includes carbon release through the destruction of rainforests is interspersed with a variety of countries not typically thought of as carbon emitters, including Indonesia and Brazil.  Were deforesting operations to scale up in these developed nations, the carbon impact would be immense. 

It is this perfect storm that former Canadian prime minister Paul Martin aims to tackle with his recent initiative to reimburse nations around the Congo rainforest for protecting their irreplaceable natural resource.  With $200 million dollars to distribute, the fund’s greatest challenge will be getting its monetary aid down to the local communities that live in and off of the rainforest. As Roger Muchaba, head of the Congolese Natural Resources Network puts it, “Putting power in the hands of the locals is the best way to ensure the forest does not disappear.” 

The government of the Democratic Republic of Congo, formerly known as Zaire, presents an example of why this is true.  Responding to the announcement of the fund, which would further assist rainforest localities by providing them with satellite surveillance, Environment Minister Jose Endundu said “Of course, it's not enough. Congo is the country that has done the best job of preserving its forest, and that cannot remain without some kind of value. We are talking today in terms of billions of dollars." 

While I might personally value the undisturbed rainforest at such a princely sum, it’s clear that at present, the world economy does not. While growing rates of carbon emissions will raise that offer over time, at this moment, I can only feel that total includes the excess dollars traditionally used to grease palms on the bureaucratic chain that leads to the jungle. It will certainly take a concerted effort from the former Canadian Prime Minister to see that the full amount of his funding reaches the people who can make a difference with it.

Photo by Irene2005