Indonesia to reduce timber output<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The government announced a plan yesterday to
\nreduce Indonesia's timber output by almost 30 percent over the
\nnext five years. They also disclosed penalties on 248 forest
\nconcessionaires for logging violations.<\/p>\n
Minister of Forestry Djamaloedin Soeryohadikoesoemo told a
\nmeeting on investment coordination that Indonesia will reduce its
\nannual timber output from 31.4 million cubic meters in the past
\nfive years to 22.5 million cubic meters in the coming five.<\/p>\n
He said Indonesia's goal of reducing its timber output was to
\npreserve its rainforests from over-exploitation.<\/p>\n
Djamaloedin said Indonesia has to be alert about the future of
\nforest management because, according to a report of the United
\nNations Development Program (UNDP) last May, Indonesia has only
\n86.4 million hectares of closed forests and 25 million hectares
\nof virgin forests left.<\/p>\n
Reduction of forests has caused floods in several areas during
\nthe rainy seasons and caused drought in certain areas during the
\ndry seasons.<\/p>\n
This year's severe dry season has damaged crops in Java and is
\nprojected to cause a 2.7 percent decrease in the country's output
\nof rice, its staple food. The decrease has caused rice shortages
\nin the market place, which automatically increases prices.<\/p>\n
Djamaloedin said there is no requirement for new investment in
\nlogging concession industries in Indonesia because it has enough
\nalready. The management of concessions whose licenses have
\nexpired will be shifted to state-owned companies.<\/p>\n
Violation<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, in a written statement for the opening ceremony of
\na three-day accounting management training in Bogor, West Java,
\nDjamaloedin said that 248 concessionaires have violated logging
\nregulations and will have to pay a total of Rp 45.34 billion
\n(US$21 million) in fines for 521 cases of forest over-
\nexploitation.<\/p>\n
The minister, who was scheduled to open the training program
\nfor chief commissioners and presidents of industrial forest
\nplantation holders and concession joint ventures, did not specify
\nwhat types of exploitation cases the concessionaires were
\ninvolved in. However, an official from the Ministry of Forestry
\nsaid that they might have been involved in one of the three types
\nof violations.<\/p>\n
The official said the three types of violations include one on
\nyearly working plans, another on the felling of more trees than
\nlicensed and the third on the felling of trees other than the
\nspecies permitted.<\/p>\n
Djamaloedin said his ministry will also send letters of first-
\ndegree warning to 468 concessionaires, of second-degree warning
\nto 211 others and of third-degree warning to other 63
\nconcessionaires.<\/p>\n
The minister said Indonesia has produced 238.60 million cubic
\nmeters of logs since the logging concession system began in the
\nearly 1970s.<\/p>\n
\"The logging concession system has given total incomes of Rp
\n5.5 trillion ($2.54 billion) in addition to foreign exchange
\nearnings of US$26 billion,\" Djamaloedin said. He added that the
\nforestry industry has been Indonesia's second largest source of
\nforeign exchange revenues after oil and gas for the last two
\ndecades.<\/p>\n
Indonesia last year earned $4.5 billion from forestry-based
\nexports, of which almost 75 percent was contributed by plywood.
\n(02)<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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