North American Forestry Commission
In the course of the first session of the North American Forestry Commission, the Mexican Government awarded the "Miguel Angel de Quevedo" medal for merit in the field of forestry to the heads of the United States and Canadian delegations and to the Deputy Director of FAO's Forestry and Forest Products Division. From kit to right: Dr. Enrique Beltrán, Under-Secretary of Forest Resources and Wildlife; Sir Henry Bermford-Peirse, FAO; Ing. Julián Rodríguez-Adame, Minister of Agriculture and Livestock of Mexico; Dr. J.D.B. Harrison, Deputy Minister of Forestry, Canada; Dr. Richard McArdle, Chief, Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture.
THE FIRST session of the newly-formed North American Forestry Commission was held at Mexico City from 24 to 29 July 1961. This commission is the latest among six similar regional forestry bodies - in Europe, Africa, Latin America, Asia and Pacific, and Near East - which now cover the entire membership of FAO.
Delegates from the three member countries - Canada, Mexico and the United States of America - which make up the North American Forestry Commission, discussed broad problems of forest policy of common concern, including international measures to combat and control forest insect pests and diseases, mutual programs of forest fire prevention and attack, and international trade in forest products.
Progress achieved in FAO's series of regional timber trends studies, undertaken in co-operation with the United Nations regional economic commissions, was reported and agreement reached on preparing a similar study for North America. The first, European timber trends and prospects, which appeared in 1953, is now being revised; the second, Timber trends and prospects in the Asia-Pacific region, has just been published; a third is under way covering Latin America, including Mexico; while a fourth has just been initiated in Africa. A world picture is planned to be presented to the next world forestry congress in 1965.
Earlier in the year the first meeting had been held of the Governing Council of the Latin-American Forest Research and Training Institute, Mérida, Venezuela. After four years on a temporary basis as a technical assistance project of FAO, the institute has now achieved permanence and independence as the result of a multilateral agreement between FAO, the Government of Venezuela, and ten member countries of FAO.
Shortly after the Mexico meeting, from 13 to 26 August, FAO convened a second World Eucalyptus Conference in São Paulo, Brazil. In Brazil, close to half a million hectares have been planted with eucalypts to stock new areas with fast-growing species, originally for fuelwood supplies. So the choice of São Paulo as the site of the conference was most suitable.
Coming five years after the first of the series held in Rome in 1956, the conference provided an opportunity for discussing both the advantages and the disadvantages of eucalypts, and for reviewing progress achieved in such fields as research, silviculture and utilization. A hundred years ago, eucalypts were virtually unknown outside Australia. Now, owing to their adaptability and versatility, their introduction has spread to every part of the world.
Australia is still the most important source of seed supply for other countries. The Government has made a most valuable proposal to set up a Certified Eucalyptus Seed Collection and Distribution Service as one of Australia's contributions to the FAO Freedom from Hunger Campaign.
Official U.S.S.R. photo
Official U.S.S.R. photo
