Day 286 - 24 Oct 96 - Page 05

     
     1        Monbiot, Charles Secrett, and also Dr. Ratta as well, if
     2        appropriate, and they may have all had something to say on
     3        that subject in addition to what they said on the situation
     4        as they understood it up to then.
     5
     6        So we were hampered by that lack of information and it may
     7        have helped the court to have had further testimony on
     8        that.  And we appreciate the acceptance of a last minute
     9        Civil Evidence Act notice from the very experienced
    10        Professor Susannah Hecht, who was able to comment at the
    11        last minute on the Gioias information.
    12
    13        So I do think that that is something that should colour the
    14        way that you approach the evidence about Brazil from all
    15        different witnesses on both sides, because what they were
    16        saying before that information was released may have been
    17        different had that information been disclosed before the
    18        whole testimony on this issue had started.
    19
    20        I mean, obviously, our witnesses are pretty clear about
         their points of view, in any case, but they would have been
    22        even stronger probably with the benefit of that
    23        information.  I think that the views of our witnesses, for
    24        example about the supply from Mato Grosso via Cuiaba and
    25        about those areas, in particular Pontes e Lacerda, Sinop
    26        and Nova Xavantina, and presumably all areas between those
    27        areas and Cuiaba, any comments they make about those places
    28        are likely to have been magnified a hundred-fold about the
    29        area in western Gioias, because not only was there a more
    30        identified block of supply regions around the River
    31        Araquaia, which is a tributary of the Amazon, but also that
    32        area is still supplying McDonald's, and therefore the
    33        length of supply, rather than relying on 1979 to 1982
    34        supplies from Mato Grosso, we are talking about supplies
    35        continuing up to today from an area of deforested
    36        rainforest and deforested tropical forest in Gioias,
    37        supplies for McDonald's use.
    38
    39        So if I can flag up some obvious headlines.
    40
    MR. JUSTICE BELL:   Yes.
    42
    43   MR. MORRIS:   I am using rainforest and tropical forest as two
    44        interchangeable words, but where it becomes specifically
    45        relevant to distinguish, then I might do so.  Let me
    46        think...  (Pause)  So McDonald's have admitted, as far as
    47        we can see, the areas of tropical forest that they have
    48        received beef supplies from, deforested tropical forest,
    49        deforested rainforest, have been those areas in Mato Grosso
    50        that were identified '79 to '82, and in western Gioias that 
    51        Susan Branford identified, commented on. 
    52        Also, as has been heard from all our witnesses, the 
    53        tropical forests extended with spurs into Gioias and Mato
    54        Grosso do Sul and especially around water courses, and
    55        evidence has been heard on that.
    56
    57        So, it is not as if rainforest or tropical forest stops at
    58        the official Amazonian region borders.  And the Cerrado, we
    59        have heard from Dr. Ratta, which includes what he would
    60        call also rainforest areas within it, and this is why I am