70 Civil Society Organisations Call On UNESCO to Protect Sundarbans From Proposed Coal-fired Power Plant

As the people from the Sunderbans coastal belt and the National Committee to Protect Oil, Gas, Mineral Resources, Power and Ports hold a grand rally in Khulna, Bangladesh, 70 civil society organisations call on UNESCO World Heritage Committee to protect the world’s largest mangrove forest, the Sundarbans, and to cancel the proposed construction of the Rampal coal power-plant project in Bangladesh.

The Sundarbans is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and a Ramsar-listed wetland. According to the civil society organisations, the Rampal coal power-plant project not only threatens the rich biodiversity of the Sundarbans, which also plays a key role in mitigating the impacts of climate change, but also the livelihoods of millions of people and the climate.

“We call on UNESCO to protect the Sundarbans and to inscribe this unique ecosystem on the List of World Heritage Sites in Danger. UNESCO has already recommended the immediate cancellation of Rampal and now it needs to do its utmost to conserve this extremely ecologically valuable zone,” said Amanda Tas from Protect the Forest.

Previously, the civil society organisations also sent appeal letters to the Presidents, Prime Ministers and several Ministers of Bangladesh and India to immediately take whatever steps necessary to halt the coal-fired power plant project in the Sundarbans and to increase investments in renewable solar and wind power.

Read the letter sent to UNESCO World Heritage Committee here

Contact:

Amanda Tas
Protect the Forest, Sweden
Email: amanda.tas@skyddaskogen.se
Mobile: +46 (0)73-5860099

Camille Risler
Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD), Thailand
Email: camille@apwld.org
Phone: +66 99 504 8764

Wally Menne
Timberwatch Coalition, South Africa
Email: plantnet@iafrica.com
Mobile: +27 (0) 82 4442083

Press contact:

Neha Gupta
APWLD, India
Email: neha@apwld.org
Phone: +91-9810 078 055

The open letter is supported by the following NGOs:
Abibiman Foundation, Ghana
AMIHAN National Federation of Peasant Women, Philippines
Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD), Asia Pacific
BankTrack, International
Biofuelwatch, UK/USA
Botswana Climate Change Network
Botswana Friends of the Earth , Bosnia and Herzegovina
CHAUKATH voluntary network of feminists, Nepal
Climate Action Network, International Climate Litigation Network, Transnational Conservatree, USA
Cordillera Women’s Education Action Research Center (CWEARC), Philippines
Cultures of Resistance Network Foundation EcoNexus, UK Ecoropa, Germany
Feminist League, Kazakhstan
Forum Environment and Development, Germany
Forum for Nature Protection NGO, Nepal
Foundation for GAIA, International
Fragile Planet Earth, South Africa
Friends of the Earth US, USA
Friends of the Siberian Forests, Russia
Friends of the Tamar Valley, UK
Nature and Youth, Sweden
GenderCC – Women for Climate Justice e.V., International
Genethics Foundation, Netherlands
Global Environment Centre, Malaysia
Global Forest Coalition, International
Green IT., Uruguay
Greenpeace Russia
Grupo Para o Desenvolvimento da Mulher e Rapariga, Mozambique
IBON International
ICLEI Local
Governments for Sustainability – Africa, South Africa
Institute for Planetary Synthesis, Switzerland
Janabhivyakti, India
Japan Tiger and Elephant Fund, Japan
Japan Tropical Forest Action Network (JATAN), Japan
Friends of the Earth, Sweden
Klimataktion Stockholm, Sweden
Korea Federation for Environmental Movements, Korea
Michael Underwood Agroforestry Associates Africa, South Africa
Mom Loves Taiwan Association, Taiwan
National Indigenous Women Forum, Nepal
NCA-Afghanistan, Afghanistan
New Wind Association, Finland
Next Big Thing Movement, Inc, USA
Oil Change International Performing Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), USA
Persatuan Kesedaran Komuniti Selangor (EMPOWER), Malaysia
Planetary Association for Clean Energy (PACE), Canada
Protect the Forest, Sweden
PUSH Sweden
Quercus- National Association for Nature Conservation, Portugal
Rainbow Eco-Farm and Training Center NPO, South Africa
Re-nourish, USA
Rettet den Regenwald, Germany
Rewild, South Africa
Rutale Development Association, Africa
Students for a Just and Stable Future, USA
SustainUS, USA
Swedish Society for Nature Conservation, Sweden
Tanzania Youth Coalition, Tanzania
TFINS, India
Thanal, India
The Endangered Wildlife Trust, South Africa
Timberwatch Coalition, South Africa
WECF Women Engage for a Common Future, International
Wildlife Impact, USA
Women’s Environment & Development Organization (WEDO), International
World Heritage International, Netherlands
YouthNet for Climate Justice, Bangladesh

20 Apr, 2017
Posted in Petitions and statements, Forests and Climate Change