Stronger action needed to stop forest burning<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Forum for Environment (Walhi) has
\ncalled on the government to take stronger action against
\ncompanies accused of burning forests, and says it is not enough
\nto merely revoke their wood-use permits.<\/p>\n
It says the decision last week by the Ministry of Forestry to
\nrevoke permits should be copied by the Ministry of Agriculture,
\nthe National Land Agency and the provincial administration.<\/p>\n
"Unless this is done, the company (whose wood-use permit is
\nrevoked) can still operate under a different company name with
\nits existing licenses," Walhi's executive director Emmy Hafild
\ntold journalists at her office here yesterday.<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Forestry announced last week that it had
\n"temporarily" revoked 154 wood-use permits belonging to 29 of 173
\nplantation companies and timber estates in Sumatra and Kalimantan
\naccused of burning forests.<\/p>\n
Under the current regulation, a company is entitled to exploit
\nthe forest only after it receives a wood-use permit, a land-use
\npermit from the Land Agency, an agribusiness permit from the
\nMinistry of Agriculture and another permit from the provincial
\nadministration.<\/p>\n
Emmy said the owners of the forest burning companies should be
\ntried for their alleged environmental crime.<\/p>\n
She said Walhi estimated that "up to 1.7 million hectares of
\nforest" were destroyed by this year's fires. This estimate was
\nbased on the number of hot spots detected by satellite over the
\npast two months.<\/p>\n
Emmy said Walhi estimated that the total financial loss due to
\ntimber losses, hospital treatment costs and airline flight and
\ntourist cancellations was Rp 6.2 trillion (US$1.7 billion).<\/p>\n
The government has yet to provide its finite estimate of
\nforest areas burned this year, but the Ministry of Forestry said
\nlast week that 96,000 hectares of forest areas had been destroyed
\nresulting in a Rp 45 billion financial loss.<\/p>\n
But, according to the Ministry of Agriculture last week, more
\nthan 120,000 hectares of plantations were ravaged.<\/p>\n
State Minister of Environment Sarwono Kusumaatmadja estimated
\nearlier that 300,000 hectares of forest and land had been razed
\nby fire in the past three months.<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Transportation announced last week an
\nestimated loss of Rp 20 billion from the haze.<\/p>\n
But Walhi's executive director said: "Our estimate is not
\nfinal because the fires are still raging." Brush and forest fires
\nhave ravaged areas in the nine provinces of Kalimantan and
\nSumatra.<\/p>\n
Walhi, which celebrates its 17th anniversary today, issued a
\nstatement calling on the government to "totally correct its
\ndevelopmental policy", which, it says, has mismanaged the
\nnation's natural resources.<\/p>\n
"This year's forest fires have been the fifth. I am afraid we
\nhaven't learned anything from the previous recurrent disaster,"
\nEmmy said.<\/p>\n
In its statement, Walhi called for a "basic and fundamental
\nchange" in the government's way of managing the country's natural
\nresources.<\/p>\n
"Unless we do so, the nation will soon be bankrupt," Emmy
\nsaid. (aan)<\/p>",
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