Bialowieża: Precious Forest on the Edge of Destruction

     On the border of Poland and Belarus, lies the Bialowieża Forest, Europe's last stand of primeval forest. Like countless other forests around the world, the Biolowieża is largely threatened by industrial logging. Recently though, the Polish government approved a plan that increased the amount of the forest open to logging threefold. This put a number of valuable species at risk, including the threatened European bison, the forest's iconic species. However, the World Heritage Committee is vying to place the Bialowieża Forest on the World Heritage in Danger list. In doing so, the committee would be sending the message to the Polish government that logging in this forest is unacceptable. The UNESCO World Heritage Committee will be convening in Istanbul, Turkey, in mid-July to decide on the status of the forest and many other unique natural places. We can only hope that the result will be in favor of the Biolawieża.