The World : Tropical Forest Plan Urged

An international task force urged an $8-billion campaign to curb destruction of the world’s tropical forests, warning that delay could doom half the human race to hunger. A third of the world’s 3 million square miles of tropical forest may vanish in 15 years unless there are changes in Third World development and farming policies, according to the study of 56 nations by the World Resources Institute, World Bank and U.N. Development Program. Such devastation could wipe out 10% to 20% of animal and plant species and worsen shortages of firewood, fertilizer and other essentials for fast-growing populations, it said.