EarthTalk®

Dear EarthTalk: I overheard someone saying the Coronavirus could drive mountain gorillas extinct? Is this because they are susceptible to the virus? -- Spencer S., Tukwila, WA

While we don’t know for sure whether mountain gorillas or other great apes are susceptible to coronavirus, no one wants to find out. Damian Carrington reports in The Guardian that the coronavirus could potentially wipe out already threatened populations of chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans — our closest living relatives with whom we share 98 percent of our DNA.

“Even pathogens producing mild symptoms in humans have been lethal to great apes in the past,” reports Carrington. “The fact that Covid-19 is fatal for some humans leads experts to fear it could potentially prove devastating to great apes.”

To date, no great apes are known to have contracted the coronavirus. Those humans who study and protect them would like to keep it that way. As a result, wildlife tourism across Africa is temporarily shut down. How long “temporary” may be is anybody’s guess at this point, but conservationists fear it could set back their efforts by decades if not put them “out of business”entirely.

“The suspension of ecotourism during the coronavirus pandemic has also meant the main source of revenue for gorilla conservation has been lost and there are fears some of those in surrounding communities who depend on tourists could turn to poaching out of desperation,” reports Jack Losh in The Guardian.

Meanwhile, the story is much the same all across Africa, where governments have suspended all tourism. Ann Gibbons reports for Science that researchers at wildlife reserves across Africa face new challenges in the age of coronavirus. The 130 wildlife rangers at Uganda’s Bwindi Impenetrable National Park are now briefed regularly on how to keep coronavirus away from gorillas and how to monitor wildlife for signs of the sickness.

At another Ugandan reserve, Taï and Kibale, researchers must quarantine for 14 days before they are allowed anywhere near the wild gorilla population under study there, And once researchers can get closer, they still must, in the words of Gibbons, “change their clothes and take their temperatures before they go into the forest, wear masks, and keep their distance.” Researchers there have also test chimps’ feces for COVID-19 and other viruses.

“Habitat loss and poaching are big threats to the survival of great apes, but viruses are also a concern,” adds Briggs. “Infectious disease is now listed among the top three threats to some great ape groups.” Indeed, past research has shown that chimps can contract the common cold virus, while Ebola is thought to be responsible for thousands of wild chip and gorilla deaths across Africa. Could coronavirus be the death knell for these and other iconic wildlife species?

CONTACTS: “Primatologists work to keep great apes safe from coronavirus,” sciencemag.org/news/2020/05/primatologists-work-keep-great-apes-safe-coronavirus; “Coronavirus poses lethal threat to great apes, experts warn,” theguardian.com/environment/2020/mar/24/coronavirus-poses-lethal-threat-to-great-apes-experts-warn.

Dear EarthTalk: Why are environmental advocates down on the Forest Stewardship Council, given its mission to eliminate unsustainable forestry? -- M.P., Raleigh, NC

Environmentalists, indigenous people and others exploited by logging in developing countries rejoiced at the launch of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) in 1993. Formed to “promote environmentally sound, socially beneficial and economically prosperous management of the world's forests,” FSC has definitely done a lot of good in the intervening three decades. Some 500 million acres of working forests around the world have become FSC-certified, and millions of consumers can sleep better at night knowing that their new decking, siding or framing comes from sustainably harvested wood.

But in recent years, critics say FSC has valued loggers’ profits over forest conservation. The disconnect, they say, stems from FSC’s claims that its auditors inspect every single log/tree entering its “certified sustainable” supply chain to ensure it has been sustainably grown and harvested. But given the volume of logging and the structure of global timber markets, there is no way FSC auditors can physically inspect each log. An auditor for millions of board feet of tropical rainforest timber might be doing his job 5,000 miles away from a skyscraper in London.

FSC maintains that its producers sign on in good faith, and that any wood entering its certification system, whether audited or not, shouldn’t be “illegally harvested, harvested in violation of traditional or civil rights, or harvested in forests where high conservation values are threatened.” But can we trust FSC’s monitoring claims and the origins of lumber when auditors aren’t physically in place?

Another criticism of FSC is that its “Seal of Approval” labeling system is confusing and may lead some consumers to a false sense of “doing the right thing.” To wit, many reams of printer paper these days bear one or another FSC seal, but whether you choose “FSC 100%,” “FSC Recycled” or “FSC Mix” has a huge bearing on how green the choice is. (“FSC Mix” products likely contain wood products that are not from FSC-certified forests.)

Another issue is FSC’s decision to continue logging in Australia last year following widespread wildfires there that wiped out 18 million acres of forest. FSC ignored pleas to halt logging until ecosystems there could recalibrate; critics claim that decision shows FSC is more about making money for logging operations than it is about saving the world’s forests.

Regardless, bolstering FSC—and holding its feet to the fire—is the best path forward for those concerned about unsustainable logging and the decimation of the world’s forests. While the group has no doubt had its problems keeping up with the popularity of its certification system, it is still working hard to achieve its overall goal of meeting our current needs for forest products without compromising the health of the world's forests for future generations. Given national governments’ lack of willingness or enforcement power to police timber extraction within their own borders, it’s up to FSC—and consumers dependent on their “FSC Seal of Approval”—to fight unsustainable logging practices.

CONTACTS: FSC, fsc.org; FSC-Watch, fsc-watch.com; “Is FSC certification worth the paper it’s printed on?” ethicalcorp.com/fsc-certification-worth-paper-its-printed; “Greenwashed Timber: How Sustainable Forest Certification Has Failed,” https://e360.yale.edu/features/greenwashed-timber-how-sustainable-forest-certification-has-failed.