2 1. However, there are multiple reasons why conservationists cite the rapid spread of oil palm plantations as a major concem. There are countless news stories of deforestation, habitat destruction and dwindling species populations, all as a direct result of land clearing to establish oil palm tree monoculture on an industrial scale, particularly in Malaysia and Indonesia. Endangered species - most famously the Sumatran orangutan, but also rhinos, elephants, tigers, and numerous other fauna - have suffered from the unstoppable spread of oil palm plantations.
IV.Palm oil is surely one of the greatest threats to global biodiversity,' declares Dr. Famon Ellwood of the University of the West of England, Bristol. 'Palm oil is replacing rainforest, and rainforest is where all the species are. That's a problem. This has led to some radical questions among environmentalists, such as whether consumers should try to boycott palm oil entirely.
Meanwhile Bhavani Shankar, Professor at London's School of Oriental and African Studies, argues,'It's easy to say that palm oil is the enemy and we should be against it. It makes for a more dramatic story, and it's very intuitive. But given the complexity of the argument, I think a much more nuanced story is closer to the truth.'
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