In a belated step to conserve the nation's depleted forest resources, the Kampuchean government has announced a complete ban on the exports of logs and sawn timber. As if to set the seal on its new-found conservation zeal, agriculture minister Tao Senghour even announced a final date for the export of these commodities (April 30).

Alarm bells have been ringing furiously in Kampuchea ever since it was revealed that forest cover in the country had reduced from 70 to 40 per cent over the past 10 years. The crisis has escalated because while logging has developed into Kampuchea's main income- earner, environmental safe- guards such as replanting have not been given much consideration.