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Honduras Communities Sell Mahogany to Guitar Manufacturer Gibson
February 20, 2006
Foresters in the Río Plátano Biosphere Reserve in Honduras are filling a rapidly growing order for mahogany from the world class guitar manufacturer Gibson, tomorrow shipping their fourth and largest container since they began in August 2005 and buckling down to cut and ship one container per month from now on. But the consequences of their industry are not seen in felled forests and fields of stumps; the woodsmen in this protected area cut and extract the wood sustainably, minimizing their impact on the forest and adhering to a management plan approved by the Administración Forestal del Estado (State Forestry Administration -- AFE-COHDEFOR), which allows controlled logging in buffer and cultural zones in the reserve. Gibson will pay $40,000 for this shipment of 4,000 pieces of mahagony, nearly four times the value of the wood in the national market. Sales from the three previous shipments total more than $100,300, a significant contribution to the impoverished, rural region. Each piece will become part of a Gibson electric guitar -– the same brand of guitar used by rock and blues legends B.B. King, Jimmy Page and the Edge.
The exports have been made possible thanks to the work of the conservation organization the Rainforest Alliance and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Working together in Central America and Mexico, the two organizations promote fair business practices and spur rural development and good management of national resources. Their union created the Certified Sustainable Products Alliance, which calls for environmental protection and good treatment of workers and neighboring communities while seeking preferential prices for the products made. The Rainforest Alliance also works with the German state development agency GTZ to provide technical support to the villages Mahor, Sawacito, El Guayabo and Brus Laguna, which together manage 35,000 hectares of forest in the Río Plátano reserve. José Román Carrera, regional coordinator for the Rainforest Alliance’s forestry program, said the communities are making the necessary changes to conform to the standards of Rainforest Alliance and Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification, which include striking a balance with the natural world and treating workers well. Gibson, he said, hopes to use only certified wood in its guitars within two years.
Carrera said the Río Plátano communities now have the potential to repeat the substantial success of other communities in the Maya Biosphere Reserve. Also, he said, the concession lands have suffered less deforestation, while nearby national parks and the communities have invested their earnings from the sale of certified wood in improving their schools and drinking water systems. "These sales are not only improving the quality of life in these communities, they also raise their consciousness of the importance of managing forest resources in a sustainable way," Carrera said. Since 1989, the Rainforest Alliance has promoted sustainable forest management through certification. Its forestry program has certified more than 28 million hectares of forests in 40 countries. It is the largest certifier of forests accredited by the FSC.
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