E&OE...
Listen to this Speech (MP3 - 1.90Mb - 124secs)
More than 4.4 million trees are cut down around the world every day and over a year, an area twice the size of Tasmania is cleared of forests.
This is having a marked impact on global warming. Almost 20 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions come from clearing forests - that's more than all the world's emissions from transport combined.
My Government has decided to tackle this problem head on. We will provide $200 million to kickstart a global fund to support forest planting and sustainable forest management and limit the destruction of remaining forests.
If the world can halve the rate of global deforestation we could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by three billion tonnes a year - more than five times Australia's total annual emissions.
Under this program we will invite like-minded countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, Brazil, New Zealand, Japan and Indonesia to join the initiative.
It will be particularly helpful in changing forest management in many of our neighbouring countries including the Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu.
It comes on top of practical action within Australia to reduce emissions - including seed funding for more than $3 billion worth of climate change projects - and our adds to our reputation as a world leader in sustainable forest management.
The Global Initiative on Forests and Climate is another example of my Government's practical action to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions.
This action helps to cut greenhouse gas emissions but does not hurt the Australian economy.
Listen to this Speech (MP3 - 1.90Mb - 124secs)