Deep in the forests of Madagascar, the periodic but incessant sound of axes meeting wood echoes through the trees. A slow drip feed of rare rosewood timber seeps through the dense forest...
Deep in the forests of Madagascar, the periodic but incessant sound of axes meeting wood echoes through the trees. A slow drip feed of rare rosewood timber seeps through the dense forest, down the many rivers that cut through the landscape and into makeshift logging camps where the valuable cargo is prepared for export. Like much of the island’s flora and fauna, dalbergia maritima – or bois de rose – is endemic to Madagascar, meaning it’s found nowhere else on earth.
“Deforestation is a problem around the whole country, but the reason this is so worrying is that it’s happening inside a national park,” explains photographer Toby Smith, who captured the illegal trade on a visit to the country last August. “When the government collapsed the park’s infrastructure collapsed too. There’s no other industry or trade in that area, so most of the people working in the forests have all come from other jobs – so you have teachers, and bus drivers, all earning very little.”
Sadly, this type of specialised logging could provide a model for creating jobs and preserving the forests, but following recent political turmoil in the country that seems very unlikely now.
“It is selective logging,” explains Toby cautiously. “The loggers go out into the forest and find specific trees, which are then cut down and removed from the forest by river. So in one way it’s better than blanket deforestation, which just wipes out the entire rainforest, but the problem at the moment is that it’s just completely unregulated. They’re chopping down everything from the smallest trees to the most mature ones, and the effect that’s having on the forest is quite large. If it’s done well it’s a good model; if it’s done badly it’s a classic example of how de-regulation causes maximum damage.”
Toby Smith’s photographs of Madagascar go on display tonight in the lobby of The Barbican as part of London International Documentary Film Festival. To see the full series, visit shootunit.com
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