It is important to think about world palm oil demand. It will only replace to amout of new fuel demand if biofuel was produced. We should think the speed to reduce energy and oil demand more than speed to produce energy and oil supply.

yeah HK - biofuels do not have the potential to replace more than a slight fraction of the energy needed by the completely insane and unsustainable economy of industrial capitalism.

providing an economy driven by an urge to "develop" natural resources with an alternative energy is ecocidal.

Not good.

"...In a sense, if the highly productive oil palm plantations replace low-intensity cattle pasture already established in the region, the Amazon may well be richer economically and biologically..."

The problem is, they won't replace pasture. They will become yet another stress on the ecosystem, along with pasture.

I'm with Ryan.

the world must act at planet level:
-reduce "dirty energy" demand _ replacing by clean one: electric battery by hydrogen Largeg development program needed
- fund the program for planet saving picking part of government tax benefit
- propqose "debt cancelation" to most poor sate in exchange of deforestation stop

The palm-oil industry in South America still suffers from fetal yellowing disease (in Brazil 'amarelacimento fatal', in Spanish speaking countries 'pudricion de cogollo', in Suriname: 'speerrot', or spear rot) for which the causing culprit is still not known. The disease affects the growing point (the palm has only one growing point) and when this occurs the tree stops producing new leaves, inlorescences and bunches. The ultimate long-term solution remains breeding the interspecific hybrid of the South-American and the African oil palm. The quest for material with high output in oil quantity and quality is on-going. Still this fatal disease, which has caused several plantations to disappear in Colombia, Suriname and in North-Brazil, and the lack of sufficient hybrid planting material may be the two main limiting factors for successful establishment and maintenance of large scale oil palm plantings resistant to the disease in South America, even if only considering palm oil for consumption. Establishment of plantations with the West-African Palm, the source of palm oil, may be a risky business.

This is not good at all. No matter HOW much biofuel created from this cutting down the rain forest will only release more CO2 into the air. These people are a direct threat to the environment and our planet. They must be stopped!

Are industrial humans becoming a parasite to planet earth?
What can we do about it?

visit youcanchangeit.co.uk

I am appauled, spechless and very angry.