London  - Britain's Prince Charles Thursday called for a halting of logging in the world's rainforests which he said would be the greatest single contribution to alleviating the effects of climate change.

Mechanisms had to be devised to pay poor countries to prevent them felling their rainforests which were the earth's "air conditioning system," the prince said in a BBC interview.

It was "crazy" that rainforests were worth more "dead than alive" to some of the world's poorest people as they are being felled for timber, food and bio fuels.

"When you think they release 20 billion tons of water vapour into the air every day, and also absorb carbon on a gigantic scale, they are incredibly valuable, and they provide the rainfall we all depend on."

Ways had to be found to ensure people living in the rainforest were adequately rewarded for the "eco-system services that their forest provides the rest of the world."

"The trouble is the rainforests are home to something like 1.4 billion of the poorest people in the world. In order to survive there has to be an effort to produce things which tends to be at the expense of the rainforest," said Prince Charles.

He named Brazil and Indonesia among the countries were action needed to be taken most urgently.

The prince, who takes a keen interest in environmental issues, called on governments, big business and consumers to demand an end to logging in the rainforest.

He said the time was right to persuade business to play its part because there was increasing concern about global warming.

Waiting for all the new technologies to come on stream was not going to be soon enough, said Prince Charles. If deforestation did not slow down soon there would be "far more drought and starvation on a grand scale." (dpa)