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September 21, 2011 – Montevideo, Uruguay STOP the expansion of monoculture tree plantations! On the occasion of the International Day of Struggle Against Tree Plantations, September 21st, social environmental organisations from Africa, Latin America, Asia and Europe gathered in Montevideo in order to exchange knowledge and experiences of resistance to the impacts of tree plantations. […]

Montes del Plata is the name of the joint venture created for operations in Uruguay by two forestry, pulp and paper transnationals: Arauco of Chile and the Swedish-Finnish company Stora Enso. The two have joined forces to build and operate a pulp mill that will produce at least 1.45 million tons of pulp annually. As […]

On May 12, 2011, the Uruguayan weekly publication Búsqueda published excerpts of an investment contract signed between the Executive Branch and Montes del Plata (a joint venture between the Swedish-Finnish company Stora Enso and the Chilean company Arauco). The contract, signed on January 18, establishes the terms and conditions guaranteed to the company for its […]

Shortly before the end of last year, the Uruguayan Ministry of the Environment (MVOTMA) granted prior environmental authorization (AAP) to Montes del Plata for the construction of a pulp mill in Conchillas, in the department of Colonia. (1) Recently, in the midst of the usual suspension of activities during the Southern hemisphere summer, the company […]

One of the promises made by plantation companies to gain support – from the government and from local communities – is that they will create employment. What they fail to specify beforehand is the type of employment they will create and under what kind of working conditions, in terms of both salaries and workers’ health […]

The plans for the construction of a pulp mill in Conchillas, in the department of Colonia, have been surrounded by a series of events that raise serious concerns. On the one hand, there are the statements made referring to the establishment of eucalyptus tree plantations in Colonia to supply the mill, and on the other, […]

There has been a lot of coverage in the local press recently on the subject of foreign investment linked to the construction of new pulp mills in Uruguay. However, despite the concerns voiced by social and environmental organizations, there has been no real discussion around the amount of land in the country that is already […]

Over the last few years, Uruguay has gained international attention as a result of the drawn-out conflict with Argentina over plans for the installation of two “mega” pulp mills in Uruguay, one by the Finnish company Botnia and the other by ENCE of Spain. The background to the conflict dates back to 2002, when the […]

As we reported in October 2009, the Korean steel company POSCO has been granted the opportunity both in India and in Uruguay to occupy territory that is valued by the inhabitants of both countries. In India, POSCO was granted permits to install a steel plant and a port and also to carry out mining prospection […]

Everywhere in the world where large-scale monoculture tree plantations are established, their arrival is preceded by a series of promises used to trick the local population into welcoming these ventures. After a few years have gone by, people start to realize that these promises are not being kept, and that things are actually even worse […]