Illegal Mahogany Logging Threatens Uncontacted Tribes in Peru

Illegal logging of mahogany trees in the Amazonian forests of southeastern Peru threatens the existence of numerous uncontacted indigenous tribes in the region, according to a new report. While oil and gas companies have been banned from the 481,560-hectare Murunahua Territorial Reserve for Indigenous People in Voluntary Isolation, illegal loggers continue to clear the forests upon which the tribes depend for subsistence, according to a report released by the organization Upper Amazon Conservancy. In addition, the loggers themselves are introducing diseases that are decimating the tribal communities. The neighboring Alto Purús National Park and Murunahua together contain the majority of Peru’s estimated 15 indigenous groups that have experienced little or no interaction with modern society. Although the U.S. outlawed the importation, possession, or sale of illegally obtained wood, the report says more than 80 percent of mahogany exports from Peru end up in the United States. The Peruvian government was given a six-month ultimatum to tackle its illegal mahogany trade this past March by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species.