Logging threatens national parks, orangutan habitat<\/p>\n
By Stevie Emilia<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Gistok, a famous orangutan from Tanjung Puting
\nnational park in Central Kalimantan, used to spend hours with the
\npark visitors, playing, watching and learning. But today, Gistok
\nis no longer to be seen; he has been missing for four months and
\nis believed to have been killed by loggers.<\/p>\n
The sad story is true. Massive illegal logging not only
\nthreatens people's livelihood, as about 60 million people still
\ndepend on their livelihood from living on the forests, but also
\nputs endangered species, including orangutans like Gistok, on the
\nbrink of extinction.<\/p>\n
Protected by both national and international laws, orangutans
\nare facing a dramatic decline. Indonesia is home to 80 percent of
\nthe remaining orangutans in the world, but almost 80 percent of
\ntheir forest habitat in this country has been destroyed within
\njust two decades.<\/p>\n
And as the forests dwindle, orangutans are pressed into
\nisolated pockets, especially refuges provided by protected
\nnational parks. But now, the parks are no longer a safe haven, as
\nthey also face serious threats posed from illegal logging
\npractices.<\/p>\n
A new report by the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA)
\nand Telapak Indonesia, The Final Cut: Illegal Logging in
\nIndonesia's Orangutan Parks, reveals that illegal logging is
\ntaking place in two of the country's most important parks:
\nTanjung Puting national park in Central Kalimantan and Gunung
\nLeuser national park in Aceh and North Sumatra. The report, which
\nwas launched late August, was based on five site investigations
\nconducted from July 1998 to August this year.<\/p>\n
The two parks, known locally and internationally as a haven
\nfor their stunning biodiversity and as centers for orangutan
\nresearch, are being destroyed by commercial-scale logging.<\/p>\n
\"I have witnessed scenes of appalling devastation in both of
\nthese so-called protected parks. The logging is totally out of
\ncontrol. The government of Indonesia must act against the timber
\nbarons directing this destruction before these vital areas and
\ntheir wildlife are lost,\" said Dave Currey, director of EIA, an
\ninternational non-governmental organization based in London and
\nWashington DC.<\/p>\n
The 400,000-hectare Tanjung Puting national park, recognized
\nas a world biosphere reserve by the United Nations, forms the
\nlargest protected area of swamp forest in the Southeast Asia
\nregion. It is now rampant with illegal logging, even into the
\ncore of the park along the Sekonyer River, where the orangutan
\nresearch stations are located.<\/p>\n
The report cited the head of the park, Suherdi Redy, as saying
\n\"if the current rate of logging continues, the park will be gone
\nin five years\".<\/p>\n
The illegal activities have been carried out in full view of
\nlocal authorities, and the research cited names and companies --
\nfrom businessmen up to the loggers -- behind the massive timber
\ntheft in Tanjung Puting park.<\/p>\n
Investigators pointed the finger at, among others, local
\ntycoon Abdul Rasyid of the Tanjung Puting Group.<\/p>\n
The tycoon's nephew, Sugianto, told the investigators, who
\nposed as timber buyers, that the company offered both legal and
\nillegal business opportunities, but suggested the second option
\nto avoid a 30 percent export tax.<\/p>\n
He boasted that with his influence, Abdul Rasyid could easily
\nbuy stolen ramin wood seized by the authorities. He disclosed
\nthat illegal timber exports to Malaysia, Hong Kong, Singapore and
\nTaiwan was not difficult, as customs could be \"influenced\", but
\nwarned that China was difficult to enter.<\/p>\n
During a tour, the investigators also saw the delivery of
\nunmarked ramin logs, showing that the wood was not from legal
\nconcessions.<\/p>\n
Along the Sekonyer River, the sight of illegal log rafts and
\nthe sound of chain saws from within the park were common, while
\ntwo logging camps were entrenched on either side of the proboscis
\nmonkey research center at Natai Lengkuas.<\/p>\n
\"The logging operations have been moving steadily toward the
\ncore part of the park, which contains most of the orangutan
\nresearch areas ... Unless the wave of logging is halted soon, not
\na single part of Tanjung Puting will remain unscathed,\" the
\nreport stated.<\/p>\n
The 890,000-hectare Gunung Leuser national park with its swamp
\nforests -- Tripa, Singkil and Kluet -- home to unique orangutans
\nthat have been regularly observed using tools made of branches to
\nextricate food from holes in trees and bee's nests, behavior
\nnever before seen in orangutans from other areas -- is also
\nthreatened by illegal logging.<\/p>\n
Local timber barons were reportedly encouraging local
\ncommunities to break the law by providing loggers with chain saws
\nand loans for food and supplies.<\/p>\n
In the Kluet swamp -- site of the Suaq Balimbing research
\ncenter -- illegal logging did not begin to spread until March
\nthis year. By July, it was estimated that about 100 loggers,
\nbased at 24 logging camps and using a system of 20 rails to pull
\nthe logs out, were operating within the study area.<\/p>\n
\"Two of the three most important food trees for orangutans in
\nthe area have been heavily logged,\" the report said, airing
\nconcern that in the next fruiting season the orangutans may face
\nstarvation.<\/p>\n
Researchers also raised fears that illegal logging would
\ndestroy unique behavioral traits, such as tool use observed in
\nthe orangutan population.<\/p>\n
Action<\/p>\n
Following the report, EIA and Telapak Indonesia called for an
\nimmediate halt to logging practices in national parks. They urged
\nthe closing down of illegal sawmills, auditing licensed sawmills
\nin the vicinity of the parks, and demanded immediate
\ninvestigations and prosecution of sawmill owners proven to have
\nacted illegally.<\/p>\n
The groups also called major international donors to support
\nactions to stop illegal logging, and demanded a thorough
\ninvestigation, prosecution and replacement of corrupt officials,
\nincluding police, military and forestry officials.<\/p>\n
The groups' campaign to save the parks does not stop here.<\/p>\n
A week after the report's launch, its representatives met
\nCentral Kalimantan Governor Rapiudin Hamarun in Palangkaraya. At
\nthe meeting, the governor acknowledged the destruction of the
\npark was now an international issue and agreed to save the park.<\/p>\n
The response was considered \"encouraging\" by Telapak's
\nexecutive director A. Ruwindrijarto.<\/p>\n
\"We support any moves to find legitimate work for the local
\ncommunities. But he is seeking to reward the wealthy timber
\nbarons by providing logging concessions and an IPK (clear cutting
\nlicense) to them to entice them out of the park ... Clearly this
\nis outrageous and totally unacceptable. We have asked him to get
\nthe provincial level chief attorney to investigate the kingpin of
\nthe operations, Abdul Rasyid, and close down his operations,\" he
\nsaid after the meeting.<\/p>\n
They also held meetings with the World Bank, the European
\nUnion, various national aid agencies and leading Indonesian
\npolitical parties. The campaign also receives support from NGOs
\nworldwide, and it will be taken to Washington DC and Europe to
\ncrank up the pressure and push for better forest legislation,
\nwhich will enable the participation of local communities and
\nbenefit Indonesian forests.<\/p>\n
The forestry bill, which was expected to be passed into law by
\nthe House of Representatives sometime this week, is feared by
\nactivists if enacted to condone exploitation of natural
\nresources.<\/p>\n
\"There's one thing politicians, aid agencies and timber barons
\ncan be sure of,\" said Dave Currey, \"this campaign continues until
\nwe win. It focuses on fundamental forestry issues in Indonesia,
\nand if the government is unable to protect two national parks,
\nwhat hope do the rest of Indonesia's forests, the people
\ndependent on them and the wildlife have?\"<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/logging-threatens-national-parks-orangutan-habitat-1447893297",
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