According to local sources in Peru, the conflict in Ucayali surrounding the destruction of the Amazon rain forest to make way for palm oil plantations (designed to produce ethanol) has become more intense over the last week [See PSG article]. Authorities from the community of Santa Clara de Uchunya have accused the head of agriculture in Ucayali region of favouring the Cayman Islands-based (and British registered) company Plantaciones Pucallpa, a company run by Dennis Melka, in the way community lands have been allocated. Roberto Guimaraes, president of the Federation on Ucayali Native Communities (FECONAU), who has faced death threats, is quoted as saying that “drastic measures” would be taken to ensure that due priority is given to the communities in land allocation decisions. He promised that the Ucayali Defence Front would adopt the issue in its platform, and that the matter would be taken up with officials in Lima. http://www.servindi.org/actualidad-noticias/28/01/2016/acusan-director-de-agricultura-de-favorecer-empresa-de-palma